The fragile ceasefire between Kiev and militias in eastern Ukraine holds despite continuing reports of shelling and fighting. According to UN, the bloody conflict has so far claimed more than 3,000 lives and left hundreds of thousands of people displaced.
27 October 2014
The Russian cabinet of ministers will consider Lugansk and Donetsk regions’ request for urgent humanitarian assistance, its press service says. The Russian government has received numerous appeals warning the situation is close to humanitarian catastrophe. The population badly needs food, drinking water, medicines and essential tools, there are no provisions for warming houses, the press service added.
24 October 2014
Ukrainian investigators searched offices of three companies broadcasting Russian TV-channels on Friday, the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs said in a statement. The bank accounts of the companies have been arrested, and their digital media have been collected. The investigation is “certain” that “the firms have used the capital received from the sale of advertising time to finance activities of terroristic groups operating on the Ukrainian territory.”
22 October 2014
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission said it can’t confirm the alleged use of cluster bombs in eastern Ukraine, reported earlier by Human Rights Watch.
"We have about 90 observers in eastern Ukraine. If we saw something like that, we would have recorded it, but that has not currently been recorded. All we have to say about ammunition or shelling appears in our daily reports. By this time there was nothing in our reports about it," OSCE spokesman Michael Bociurkiw told Deutsche Welle.
READ MORE:Kiev govt used cluster munitions in populated zones in E. Ukraine – HRW
19 October 2014
Refugees from eastern Ukraine’s regions of Donetsk and Lugansk are protesting at the country’s government in Kiev, reports the local press. They are demanding authorities give them a place to live, food and clothes. The demonstrators made an installation – a sofa, on which there are words, saying “It is as empty as your promises.”
At least seven people died and 36 were injured in the Donetsk Region during shelling, the Donetsk People’s Republic told RIA Novosti.
“The shelling is very intense, five self-defense forces have been killed, 30 injured,” the deputy head of the self-defense forces, Eduard Basurin, said. “As for civilians, a couple was killed … near Donetsk and six civilians injured,” he added.
According to the Ukraine Council of National Security and Defense, 13 troops have been injured in the last 24 hours in the Donetsk Region.
18 October 2014
Russia and Ukraine have agreed to a preliminary gas price for the winter months, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told Ukrainian TV channels.
"[We] reached an agreement," Poroshenko said. "Until March 31 we will fix the price at $385.” The news comes after a meeting between Poroshenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Milan on Friday.
Poroshenko added that Ukraine might need help from international players to pay Russia. "We must solve the question of how we cover the deficit of funds for Naftogaz for gas purchases," Poroshenko said. "We have several different options [including] the International Monetary Fund (IMF)."
The IMF is scheduled to visit Ukraine in mid-November to discuss possible amendments to the Ukrainian loan program, according to Poroshenko.
Earlier, Poroshenko stated that Kiev and Moscow had failed to resolve their gas supplies dispute. Meanwhile, Putin said that only an agreement for winter supplies had been reached, and that details were still being worked out.
A plume of black smoke was seen rising over the Donetsk skyline, Saturday as fighting reportedly resumed in the vicinity of the city's international airport. The facility, located six miles (10 kilometres) from the city centre, is contested by pro-Kiev forces and militants of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR/DNR).
2 civilians dead after shelling in #Donetsk They were making bbq when rocket landed. pic.twitter.com/BrFoqILnWW
— Roman Kosarev (@Kosarev_RT) October 18, 2014
The law on the special status of the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine - which includes Donetsk and Lugansk – has come into force. It was published in the country’s parliamentary newspaper, Holos Ukrayiny. On September 16, the Ukrainian parliament approved laws on special status for the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions, as well as amnesty for the rebels in the hostilities. The law guarantees the right to use and study Russian, or any other language, in Ukraine. It also states that local elections are to take place in the regions on December 7.
17 October 2014
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said that the current low oil prices are “no tragedy” for the Russian budget, stressing that they may soon see an upward correction.
Speaking at a press briefing following talks with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko in Milan on Friday, Putin said the current price of US$80 per barrel is not profitable for producers and should rise in the near future.
The Russian state budget is drafted based on the price of $96 per barrel, he added.
Putin also reassured that that there will be no sharp rise in Russia’s budget deficit. He did, however, state that some corrections to the budget may be made, but that welfare spending won't be affected.
“Maybe we’ll have to correct something in the budget. Maybe cut down some items but it surely won’t be connected with cutting social expenditures,” he said. According to the president, Russia is able to make those corrections without any significant losses taking place.
A total of 3,707 people have been killed and 9075 wounded as of October 15 in the eastern Ukraine conflict, a UN body said. The Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UNOCHA) said in its weekly report that the estimates were restrained, and the real figures could be much higher.
The Office's previous report said that 3,682 people had been killed and 8,871 injured.
People continue to leave the conflict-affected territories. By October 17, some 415,000 people had been temporarily displaced – up 13,000 from the week before. Still the number of refugees, didn’t change and remains at 427,000 – the majority of them being in Russia.
UNOCHA officials expressed concern due to ceasefire violations, and the fact that people need support and humanitarian aid. The UN requested humanitarian aid but received only one third of their desired amount – US$11.1 billion dollars.
16 October 2014
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed a law giving special status to parts of the troubled Donetsk and Lugansk regions in eastern Ukraine, a statement on the president's official website said on Thursday.
According to the website, the legislation "defines temporary order of local government in certain districts."
Aiming to restore the regions' infrastructure and "create conditions" to stabilize the situation in the area, the special order enacts governance "in the cities, towns and villages" to be "carried out by territorial communities through local government bodies under the Constitution and the Laws of Ukraine."
The legislation schedules local elections in the districts for December 7. The special order will be valid for three years from the date of its publication.
11 October 2014
The Donetsk People’s Republic and the Lugansk People’s Republic are implementing a “silent” ceasefire, DPR Prime Minister Alexandr Zakharchenko said, under which all military actions and firing will stop. According to Zakharchenko, after that heavy vehicles will be taken away from the frontline under OSCE supervision. The DPR headquarters is waiting for a response from the OSCE.
Previously, DPR Deputy PM Ravil Khalikov stated that Kiev had agreed to the demarcation line proposed by the DPR. However, Andrey Lysenko, spokesman for Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, hasn’t confirmed this information.
10 October 2014
The death toll in eastern Ukraine has grown by 55 deaths over the past week to reach 3,682, according to data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).
In addition, 8,871 people have been wounded, the UN said, while 402,000 are now considered internally displaced.
08 October 2014
Drones for the OSCE monitoring mission in Ukraine are already in Kiev, OSCE spokeperson said on Wednesday. They are to be sent to the east of the country in a couple of days and are to be in action in one or two weeks. There is no strict schedule for their use, he added.
Over 100 trucks with German humanitarian aid enter #Ukraine (VIDEO) http://t.co/8LzkPtEPhCpic.twitter.com/uTAv7F1XdW
— RT (@RT_com) October 8, 2014
07 October 2014
Ukrainian prosecutors have opened criminal cases against the country’s eight former Defense Ministers, who served from 1996. They are all accused of undermining the Ukrainian army’s fighting efficiency.
Ukrainian authorities have officially declared a "night of silence" - a strict observation of the ceasefire in the area of artillery exchanges in eastern Ukraine, but DPR officials have said that they have not been contacted directly by Kiev officials.
"We've not been told anything about any so-called 'night of silence'. As a result of government barrages, two people have died, and three have been wounded," said a statement from the DPR press office.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has asked Parliament to consider as high priority the draft resolution that would introduce changes to the district borders within the Lugansk region to improve its “governability.”
According to the presidential press service, “at a meeting with the heads of factions and deputy groups, Poroshenko offered to support draft resolutions introduced by the Chairman of the Verkhovna Rada of Lugansk Regional State Administration, Gennady Moskal.”
According to the statement, the move is necessary as “certain areas of the Lugansk region” are not “fully controlled” by Kiev. Such territorial changes would provide for better control and sustainment of the regions, the statement reads.
06 October 2014
RT’s Maria Finoshina has visited a local school in Donetsk. Built in the 1930s, it survived World War II, but was almost completely ruined in a fight between Kiev and the rebels.
The first two drones have arrived to Ukraine to help the OSCE monitor situation in the troubled east of the country, OSCE spokesperson Michael Bociurkiw said, according to RIA Novosti. There are a total four drones expected to be operating in Ukraine. Bociurkiw said the first two drones might be used as soon as in two days, once all paperwork is checked. He did not specify when the other two drones are expected to arrive in Ukraine. OSCE requested drones to help oversee the implementation of the truce mid-August. Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko officially authorized drone deployment on September 13.
05 October 2014
Tanks just now on the streets of #Donetsk - heading twrds #Donetskairport for final stage? #Ukraine#ATO#ceasefire
— Maria Finoshina (@MFinoshina_RT) October 5, 2014
At least 1,300 people have gone missing in the Donetsk Region since the beginning of the military conflict, Darya Morozova, head of the Refugees and Military Captives Committee of the Donetsk People's Republic told TASS.
04 October 2014
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is halting its operations in eastern Ukraine for several days following the death of one its employees in the shelling of the city of Donetsk, the organization’s press secretary said.
"We have suspended operations for a few days, because now the most important things for us are, first of all, ensuring the safety of our employees in Donetsk, and, secondly, to deliver the body of our worker (Laurent DuPasquier, 38) to his family in Switzerland,” Alina Murzaeva, ICRC’s press secretary in Ukraine, told RIA Novosti news agency.
The future of ICRC’s presence in Ukraine is to become the subject of a later discussion, Murzaeva added.
The trilateral mission of officials from the OSCE, Russia and Ukraine has begun to outline a buffer zone in the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions, said Dmitry Gorbunov from the press service of the Kiev military operation in the city of Mariupol, eastern Ukraine.
The conflict in eastern Ukraine has killed over 3,600, with just under 8,450 others wounded as of September 30, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said in the weekly report.
OCHA noted some serious ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine: “Despite ceasefire and a 9-point memorandum signed by the parties on 19 September, serious ceasefire violations are reported daily and shelling has intensified in parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. As a result, displacement is on the rise and lives of civilians are endangered.”
The humanitarian organization also urged to find a solution in Ukraine, warning that beginning January 2015, Ukraine “will not be able to cover the country-wide needs for antiretroviral and TB drugs.”
03 October 2014
The UN Security Council has “strongly condemned” the killing of International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) member Laurent Etienne du Pasquier during the shelling of Donetsk on Thursday, and has called for an investigation into the incident.
“The members of the Security Council stressed the need to conduct an objective and thorough investigation into this tragic death,” Council President María Cristina Perceval said in a statement. “The members of the Security Council expressed their deep sympathy and condolences to the family of Mr. DuPasquier, as well as to the ICRC and the people and Government of Switzerland.”
Common thing here in #Donetsk: real estate for rent. 1 mln city (back in good times) now is city of closed shops etc pic.twitter.com/SIbEU6jnSk
— Maria Finoshina (@MFinoshina_RT) October 3, 2014
One person was injured as clashes erupted in Kiev near the Court of Appeals building, where judges were deciding the fate of an ex-Berkut commander charged with shooting Maidan activists at the protests held earlier this year. Former members of the Berkut riot police got into a fight with Maidan supporters. Police arrived at the scene to disperse the crowd.
Moscow denied claims that Russian troops are moving across Ukraine’s border. Chairman of the State Duma Sergey Naryshkin said at the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly's in Geneva that “…there is no weapon supply from Russia and there is no movement of troops from Russia to Ukraine” despite false claims that were made to this effect.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has told US Secretary of State John Kerry in a phone conversation that strict observance of conditions for a peace plan between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels must be maintained.
"(Lavrov) underscored the necessity of a strict observance by the fighting parties of the Minsk accords on a ceasefire," the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Friday. (Reuters)
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon said he is “saddened” and “disturbed” by the shelling in Donetsk on Thursday, which took the life of a Swiss Red Cross worker. He warned that it would be “catastrophic for Ukraine, the region and beyond” if the situation returns back to “full-scale fighting,” urging all to adhere to the Minsk Memorandum agreed on September 19.
“These recent, tragic incidents underscore the fragility of the current cease-fire and the importance of ensuring a secure environment in south-eastern Ukraine that will allow humanitarian actors to carry out their work and deliver critical assistance to those most in need,” Ban said in a statement.
02 October 2014
Head of the OSCE and Swiss President Didier Burkhalter said in a statement he was “shocked” to learn of all the deaths in Donetsk, and urged both parties of the conflict to cease fire immediately.
Burkhalter added that the ceasefire provides “a real opportunity to de-escalate the situation in a stable way...The civilian population, which has been suffering from violence in the region for months, are looking forward to a return to normal life.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) condemned the Thursday shelling of the city of Donetsk that killed a Swiss Red Cross worker, saying it was in violation of international humanitarian law.
"We are deeply shocked by this death. We know that today [Thursday] in Donetsk there were other casualties among civilians. Indiscriminate shelling of residential areas is unacceptable and violates the international humanitarian law,” the ICRC’s statement said.
Several blasts were heard in the center of Donetsk as it was heavily shelled, RT Arabic correspondent Anna Knishenko reported from the eastern Ukrainian city.
Над центром #Донецк черный дым. Обстрел был очень сильный. 3 серии взрывов pic.twitter.com/y1oAbcbsFu
— RT Anna Knishenko (@A_Knishenko_RT) October 2, 2014
A fierce fire has started at Donetsk Airport, RIA Novosti reported. Huge plumes of smoke are rising above the facility, and the wind is carrying the smoke towards the city, even visible in the city center.
Self-defense fighters assume that the source is a storage facility for combustibles and lubricants.
The blaze comes after Ukrainian forces controlling the airport reportedly carried out missile strikes targeting Donetsk’s residential areas, with the self-defense forces forced to respond.
On Wednesday, at least nine people were killed in strikes on a school: six at a bus stop, and three in the school itself.
01 October 2014
Shelling of civilian targets by Kiev forces in eastern Ukraine must not be further allowed, Russian President Vladimir Putin told German Chancellor Angela Merkel during a phone conversation late on Wednesday, the Kremlin's press service stated.
“The importance of compliance to the Minsk protocol was stressed, especially concerning the ceasefire, withdrawal of heavy weapons, and the effective monitoring of the situation by the OSCE,” the statement added.
The two leaders also agreed they would both prefer speedy progress on the Ukrainian gas situation.
There were earlier reports of up to 11 people killed following artillery shelling in Donetsk, after a bus station and a school were hit, RIA Novosti reported, citing Deputy Prime Minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, Andrey Purgin.
A key point in the ceasefire deal in eastern Ukraine, a full exchange of prisoners of war, has been perverted by Kiev, presumably because the self-proclaimed republics have captured significantly more prisoners of war than the government forces.
To ‘compensate’ for the short quantity of POWs Kiev needs for exchange, Ukrainian law enforcement are arresting ordinary citizens and proclaiming them ‘separatists’ in order to trade them for their own men. To complicate identification of the persons being exchanged, the prisoners are deliberately stripped of all their documents, so the deception can’t be detected until after the exchange has already taken place.
“No one can say for sure how many prisoners are being held by each side,” RT’s Maria Finoshina reports.
29 September 2014
Over 460 Kiev army troops have been released in the past two weeks, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said.
28 September 2014
One of the biggest monuments to the Bolshevik Revolution leader Vladimir Lenin has been toppled in Ukraine’s second largest city of Kharkov by “activists” who had gathered in their hundreds to watch it being sawn down waiting to get pieces as souvenirs.
Donetsk and Kiev have exchanged more war prisoners. A total 30 Ukrainian army troops and 60 militia fighters have been handed over to their respective sides. Initially, it was planned that both Kiev and Donetsk exchange in accordance with the “40 for 40” formula.
27 September 2014
Kiev authorities have sent six armored vehicles, eight trucks and three minibuses to the Russian border in the Donbass region, the Ukrainian Border Guard Service said in a statement.
“It’s the first batch of equipment, which will soon be supplied to the Ukrainian-Russian border… in order to strengthen the border units," the statement said.
A total of 20 APCs have been recently repaired and allocated to the Ukrainian border guard service. The government also bought 50 new trucks for the agency.
Tim Wall
Military representatives from Kiev and the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics met in the Ukrainian town of Gorlovka, in the Donetsk Region. They were discussing the practical aspects of implementing the Minsk ceasefire agreement, which includes the withdrawal of heavy weapons from the front line. Officials from the Russian military and the OSCE were present as mediators.
25 September 2014
The authorities in Kiev did not give orders to use weapons against civilians in the east of the country. Ukraine's Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk said in New York, as the death toll in Ukraine's conflict soared past 3,000, according to top UN human rights official Ivan Simunovic.
Answering a question from Human Rights Watch as to why Kiev used artillery and other weapons against civilians in the east of the country, Yatsenyuk said that "the army did not give such an order." He also claimed that the Ukrainian authorities "are ready to start an investigation, if anyone has any information about these cases," and suggested HRW send evidence to the authorities in Kiev.
24 September 2014
Russia's Defense Ministry has denied statements about the alleged presence and further "significant" withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine – the information earlier provided by NATO spokesman Lt Col Jay Janzen.
Referring to the fact that an "official statement" was sent to Reuters from a private e-mail, Russian Defense Ministry representative Major General Igor Konashenkov said there is a "tendency of further lowering" of status of NATO spokespersons.
"I guess future anti-Russian statements under NATO’s name should be expected from cleaning company representatives, which provides cleaning service for the headquarters – and in the form of SMS mass delivery," Konashenkov said.
About 300,000 Ukrainians who have come to Russia have asked for temporary asylum status or a temporary residence permit, the head of Russia’s Federal Migration Service said Wednesday. Talking about residents of Eastern Ukraine, Konstantin Romodanovsky said at a meeting with Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev: “We have registered over 2.8 million border crossings since April 1… Now there are over 875,000 residents of Lugansk, Donetsk, these regions, in the Russian Federation.”
NATO has noticed a significant withdrawal of Russian forces from inside Ukraine, bloc military spokesman Lieutenant-Colonel Jay Janzen told Reuters. However, it has been observed that many Russian forces remain stationed in the vicinity, he added.
"There has been a significant pullback of Russian conventional forces from inside Ukraine, but many thousands are still deployed in the vicinity of the border," Lieutenant-Colonel Jay Janzen said in an email to Reuters.
Janzen said there appeared to be a reduction in incidents, including artillery fire, between Ukrainian forces and self-defense fighters.
On September 4, one of NATO’s top brass said Russia had a few thousand combat troops and hundreds of tanks and armored vehicles inside Ukraine, and around 20,000 troops near the Ukrainian border.
A week ago, NATO said it believed Russia still had around 1,000 soldiers inside Ukraine.
23 September 2014
The number of people killed in the Ukraine conflict has exceeded 3,500 people, UN Assistant Secretary-General for Human Rights Ivan Simonovic said, the Itar-Tass news agency reported. A total of 3,543 people have died, including the 298 victims of the Malaysian Airlines MH17 plane crash in eastern Ukraine.
“The actual number may be significantly higher,” Itar-Tass quoted Simonovic as saying.
On September 8, the UN estimated the number of killed was 2,729, not including the MH17 plane crash victims.
22 September 2014
The World Health Organization (WHO) has handed out the first tranche of humanitarian assistance in the amount of $170,000 to Ukraine, the country’s Ministry of Health reports.
The WHO aid is aimed at offering necessary medicine and medical devices to those who have suffered during the fighting in Donetsk and Lugansk regions. In addition, some aid will go to Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkov, the Zaporozhzhya region, and Kiev. The next tranche of aid from the WHO is expected to arrive on September 25.
In a telephone conversation, Russian President Vladimir Putin and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon discussed the situation in the east of Ukraine and praised the Minsk ceasefire agreement, the Kremlin said, adding that both sides “expressed readiness to fully support the consolidation of the peace process.”
Over 180,000 Ukrainians have applied for refugee status and permission for temporary asylum in Russia, Konstantin Romodanovsky, head of Russia's Federal Migration Service has said, adding that Russia is ready to accept all Ukrainians seeking refuge.
According to the official, 110,000 Ukrainian citizens have already received asylum in Russia, and from 5,000 to 9,000 people a day continue to flee Ukraine and arrive in Russia's Rostov region.
In accordance with the Minsk Memorandum, Ukrainian troops are preparing to retract heavy armaments 15km from their previous positions, a spokesman for Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council, Andrey Lysenko, informed.
All artillery systems and armored vehicles with cannons 100mm caliber and larger will be moved away from the present positions. The self-defense militia of Donetsk and Lugansk Regions have reportedly started to do the same, but with less evident progress, because they have fewer heavy armaments than Ukrainian troops. After both militaries step back the agreed 15km, that would create a 30km security zone between the warring parties.
21 September 2014
The ceasefire in southeastern Ukraine was a justified move, as it has already led to the release of 1,500 prisoners, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said.
“And today we have saved lives. I think there’ll be more than 1,500 people saved. People are still dying, but the number of casualties has decreased tenfold. There’s no alternative to peace,” the president explained.
During his appearance on Ukrainian TV, Poroshenko also stressed that a de-escalation of the conflict is taking place in Donbass.
The Ukrainian military has lost over half of its military hardware during the fighting in Donetsk and Lugansk Regions, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said.
“I can tell you how much hardware we lost...from 60 to 65 percent of hardware has been destroyed,” Poroshenko said on Ukrainian TV.
The local militia of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and Ukrainian army forces have exchanged 28 captives from both sides, ITAR-TASS reported.
A new round of prisoner exchange is scheduled for Sunday, a rebel source told RIA Novosti. “We expect to see 27 prisoners freed. It’s settled for 24 of them and we are in negotiations for about three others,” the source said.
Earlier on Saturday, Kiev and the militias exchanged 38 captives each.
20 September 2014
The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has estimated infrastructure damage from Kiev's offensive in Donetsk and Lugansk to be around $440 million, Itar-Tass reported. “At least 1,969 objects have been damaged during the conflict, including 659 public buildings, 1,230 of private buildings as well as 178 homes and offices. Damage is estimated at $440 million,” the UNHCR report stated.
According to the UN, the number of Ukrainian refugees fleeing to foreign states – including Russia – to avoid the fighting is on the decrease.
A UN source told RIA Novosti that as of September 18, the number of Ukrainian refugees abroad was estimated at 341,000.
Over 800,000 Ukrainians have crossed into Russia in recent months, but people have started returning to their homes following a ceasefire announced between the militia and Kiev.
Representatives of the self-defense forces in the Donetsk and Ukrainian security services have exchanged prisoners, in accordance with the '40 for 40' formula, the Prisoner Exchange Committee of the People's Republic of Donetsk said in a statement.
The previous exchange of prisoners between the sides in the eastern Ukrainian conflict followed a '73 for 73' formula.
Detonations continue at the burning plant in Donetsk, where a powerful explosion occurred earlier on Saturday, reports RIA Novosti. Local residents said stored shells detonating from the heat are the most likely cause.
The initial explosion was so strong that the blast wave shattered windows in a house about 1 kilometer from the plant.
A powerful explosion was reported in Donetsk. City residents and correspondents on the ground tell of a huge cloud of smoke rising from the location of an explosives and ammunition factory.
Militia sources said the factory was hit by two missiles. No casualty report was immediately available.
ДОНЕЦК ★ МОЩНЫЙ ВЗРЫВ НА КАЗЕННОМ ЗАВОДЕ ХИМИЧЕСКИХ ИЗДЕЛИЙ МИНОБОРОНЫ УКРАИНЫ (ВИДЕО) ⇢ http://t.co/GE5S7zXBX3pic.twitter.com/5PnxUI0FK8
— MilitaryMaps (@MilitaryMaps) September 20, 2014
The third convoy of Russian humanitarian aid for eastern Ukraine has arrived in the war-torn city of Donetsk, reported Itar Tass. The convoy of around 200 vehicles is carrying some 2,000 tons of cereals, canned food, generators, medicine, warm clothes, and bottled water. Russia said it offered the Ukrainian border guards to check the vehicles on the border on several occasions, but they declined without citing any particular reason. On September 13 and on August 22 Russia delivered humanitarian aid to the city of Lugansk in eastern Ukraine. On both occasions Kiev refused to clear the cargoes and accused Russia of invading Ukraine.
The signed memorandum consists of nine points, former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma told journalists following peace talks in Minsk, Belarus.
“The first one is stopping the use of weapons by both sides, the second is terminating new formations of units on military bases as of September 19. The third is banning the use of all types of weapons and offensive action,” Kuchma said.
19 September 2014
All foreign mercenaries must be withdrawn from eastern Ukraine by both sides of the conflict, the signed Minsk memorandum states, according to former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma.
“We have agreed on the withdrawal of all foreign mercenaries from both sides,” Kuchma told RIA Novosti following talks in the Belarusian capital.
Ukraine troops must pull back all heavy artillery by 15 kilometers from the conflict zone in eastern Ukraine, RIA Novosti cited former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma as saying.
Both sides also vowed to continue the exchange of prisoners.
Kiev authorities and representatives of the self-proclaimed eastern Ukrainian republics have signed a final memorandum on a ceasefire and conflict resolution, RIA Novosti reports citing Lugansk People’s Republic representative Aleksey Karyakin.
The sides have signed a memorandum following peace talks in Minsk, Belarus. The agreement outlines a buffer zone of 30 km (18.6 miles) and bans all military aircraft from flying over part of eastern Ukrainian territory, except for the OSCE's aerial vehicles, former Ukrainian president Leonid Kuchma told RIA Novosti following the meeting.
The negotiations were also attended by Russia’s OSCE representatives.
The US will be taking part in talks to resolve the situation in the Donbass region, located in eastern Ukraine, the country’s presidential aide Valery Chaliy said on the Ukrainian television show 'Shuster Live.' Chaliy added that “we have agreed with President Barack Obama that the US will be involved in the negotiations.” It is important that France, Germany, and Russia also participate, Chaliy said.
The tragedy of the crash of Malaysian Boeing MH17 over Ukraine has been used by some countries to escalate international tension, Russian UN representative Vitaly Churkin said.
“Right after the incident, before getting any reliable data, public statements blaming the local militia forces were made, and our country was blamed for committing a serious international crime,” he added.
Churkin gave a reminder that “Russia was the first and, in point of fact, the only country which immediately and publicly revealed all the evidence of objective control it had <…> Russia’s Defense Ministry and Russian Aviation not only disclosed the information, but also presented a list of questions, the answers to which are needed to get an objective picture of what happened.” Many of them were addressed to the Ukrainian side – and many were left unanswered, he added.
18 September 2014
Donetsk, meanwhile, stands with Scotland.
— Anton Zverev (@Zreuters) September 18, 2014
Ukrainian refugees who had been escaping conflict in the Rostovskaaya Oblast region of Russia are beginning to return in groups, following news of a ceasefire agreement in the south-east of Ukraine between Ukrainian forces and the self-defense forces in the region.
Late August saw the influx of refugees bring the total number to about 55 thousand people. Now, however, according to local authorities, the number has fallen to just over 49 thousand people.
17 September 2014
Watch RT's Madina Kocheneva report on Wednesday's riots at the presidential administration building in Kiev
1,165 residential buildings in Donetsk have been damaged by shelling, the City Council reported on Wednesday, adding that some 750 of those are privately-owned houses.
The City Council also said several areas in Donetsk have experienced problems with gas and water supplies, due to damaged pipes.
More buildings were hit during fighting in the Donetsk airport area, which continued on Wednesday morning, the City Head website reported. The statement said two people were killed in Wednesday’s attacks, and three more were injured.
Russia's Foreign Ministry says the law regarding special status for the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, approved by the Ukrainian parliament on Tuesday, is "positive" and "provides the basis for the launch of a substantial constitutional process in Ukraine," which will help achieve peace in the country.
In its comments Moscow also said that any attempts to prevent the law from coming into force by "certain political groups" in Ukraine might worsen the situation in the country's south-east and "undermine international and local politicians’ efforts" to solve the crisis.
Russia will "immediately react" to the Association Agreement between Ukraine and the EU, should its parts regarding the free-trade zone be applied before the time stated in the agreement, Russia's Foreign Ministry said.
Ratified by the EU and Ukrainian parliaments on Tuesday, the Association Agreement mentions that economic integration between Kiev and Brussels has been postponed until the end of 2015.
"For the Agreement to come into full force, such a procedure should be implemented by all 28 EU countries," the Foreign Ministry statement reads.
Moscow also said it hoped Kiev and EU would still observe agreements reached at a previous trilateral meeting in Brussels on September 12, "to avoid additional complications in Russian-Ukrainian trade and economy relations."
Protesters gathered outside the presidential administration in Kiev and threw flashbang grenades at the building, Ukrainian media reported.
Ukraine's 112 channel said protesters demanded that President Petro Poroshenko not sign the new law on special status for the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions, approved by the parliament on Tuesday.
16 September 2014
Uneasy as it is, the truce in eastern Ukraine has encouraged many refugees to return to their war-ravaged towns and cities. RT’s Roman Kosarev has been on the devastated streets of Lugansk and spoken to its residents, who are trying to restore a semblance of normal life in a place where there's no water, electricity or telephone connections.
The head of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic, Igor Plotnitsky, has welcomed the law on special status for Ukraine’s eastern regions proposed by President Poroshenko.
“The law on the special status of Donbass generally reflects the priorities we voiced at the September 1 negotiations. That’s why, even though a lot remains unclear, we may say that peaceful solution has received its first chance of being implemented,” Plotnitsky told RIA Novosti.
At least four people died in the city of Donetsk after an artillery shell hit a car service station on Monday night, RIA Novosti reported. Locals have been hiding in basements and are scared to come out, the agency's correspondent reporting from the scene said.
15 September 2014
The OSCE’s Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine (SMM) came under fire while on a mission in the east of the country, the organization reported. "The patrol vehicles were damaged by artillery or mortar fire," the SMM reported, adding that "prior to the departure of the patrol, the routes were agreed upon by both parties both in person and over the phone."
There were six monitors traveling in two armored vehicles. Both cars were "hit by artillery fragments," but the team left the area unhurt.
SMM Chief Monitor Ambassador Ertugrul Apakan said that the teams were operating in Donetsk and Lugansk and had reported a series of cease-fire breaches. "We call on all sides to abide by the cease-fire commitment as agreed in Minsk, and to allow for full monitoring of the implementation of this regime," Apakan said, adding that the SMM is determined to continue its mission in the region.
Austria will supply ten drones to OSCE observers in Ukraine, the Austrian Foreign Minister Sebastian Kurz told Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, at a meeting in Kiev.
“Our mission is not just to support peaceful settlement by delegating Austrian observers to the OSCE mission, but also to send ten Austrian drones for use by OSCE monitors to enable them to control the conflict territories (in east Ukraine) with an aim to step up the peaceful settlement,” the Ukrainian president’s press service stated, citing Kurz.
Earlier in the day, there were media reports that the Austrian firm Schiebel was ready to supply two drones to Ukraine.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is unaware of any NATO countries sending arms to Ukraine, according to her spokesman. The response came after Ukrainian Defense Minister Valery Heletey said that alliance members were already providing munitions.
"The question of whether weapons are being delivered should be directed to the countries that supposedly or allegedly are doing it. We are not one of those countries and I know of no such thing," said Merkel's spokesman, Steffen Seibert, according to Reuters.
Heletey said Sunday that NATO members were supplying his country with weapons. He said this was agreed upon following the alliance’s summit in Wales earlier in the month. NATO officials had previously stated they would not send “lethal assistance” to Ukraine, which is not a member of the organization.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has introduced a new bill to parliament, allowing special self-administration in some parts of the Donetsk and Lugansk regions in eastern Ukraine, the country's media reported. The bill includes introduction of local elections in the region, which it is proposed are to be held November 9.
The bill also guarantees the right to use Russian or any other language in "social and everyday life" and insures that participants of the events in the region will not be criminally or otherwise prosecuted by the state.
Ukrainian forces were shooting at militia over the weekend in Kirovskoe near Donetsk, militia representatives told Interfax agency on Monday. As a result of the attack, 11 people were killed and four injured. According to the militia, an OSCE car was also fired at during the shelling.
Meanwhile, six civilians were killed and 15 injured in the shelling of Donetsk on Sunday, the City Council reported. Its press service also said that several residential buildings were destroyed in the attack, and that pipelines were damaged in some areas of the city.
A crew from RT’s video agency Ruptly witnessed shelling outside Donetsk on Sunday. Here’s the footage of the attack.
14 September 2014
Group of OSCE observers came under fire near Donetsk, RIA Novosti reports.
"In the Kirov area a group of five people came under fire a group of five came under fire. Nobody was hurt. The car was damaged " said the agency's source.
The prisoner swap between Ukrainian military and Donetsk People's Republic self-defence forces went smoothly and according to the ceasefire plan, as Ukrainian forces released 70 captives and DPR forces released 73 people. The swap took place 20 kilometres from Donetsk, on the Donetsk-Konstantinovka highway. According to DPR officials, the total number of prisoners exchanged in the end could reach more than 1,500.
A prisoner swap between Kiev's security forces and the militia of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk is underway, 30 kilometers from Donetsk in eastern Ukraine, RIA Novosti reported.
According to the agency, Kiev has released 69 captives instead of promised 73, while the militia said they would hand over 73 Ukrainian soldiers.
During a similar swap on Friday, the militia handed over 36 Ukrainian personnel, with Kiev freeing 31 captives in turn.
The swap follows a ceasefire agreement signed in Minsk and implemented as of September 5.
The shelling of a residential area in Donetsk has been witnessed by a member of Russia's Presidential Council of Human Rights, Maksim Shevchenko.
"We were in a car with the 'Press' marking on it, with a police car escorting us through Donetsk, when five to six mortar strikes hit the area," Shevchenko said, adding that it was a densely populated part of the city, containing no military equipment.
According to the official, a police officer escorting the group and several civilians were killed in the attack.
Shevchenko told Rusisa’s Itar-Tass news agency that he would report the event to higher ranking officials, including the president, as he considered it "a violation of the cease-fire by Kiev and a military crime."
Dozens of houses have been destroyed in the Donetsk Region, eastern Ukraine, the Defence Ministry of the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Donetsk said in a statement.
“We can exactly speak of five people dead… among the victims is a 15-year-old,” the ministry said.
According to Donetsk authorities, Ukrainian troops fired artillery shells from the city’s airport.
Heavy fighting has been reported in the area around Donetsk airport, where a group of armed men of unknown nationality has been holed up for weeks. The armed men trapped in the airport are firing using conventional artillery and multiple rocket launch systems. Some private homes have reportedly been damaged near the airport. “It appears the defenders [of the airport] are using all firepower they have at their disposal,” the Defense Ministry of the Donetsk People’s Republic said.
The Ukrainian army has restarted artillery shelling of the city of Donetsk. Two districts, Kuibyshevsky and Kievsky, have suffered the worst damage, with multiple fires started in dwelling quarters. The firefighters could not move to the area to extinguish fires because it is not safe there. It has also been reported that urban electric transport no longer services the central railway station due to electric supply breakdown.
Anti-government fighters and Ukrainian troops are going to exchange prisoners later in the day, according to the head of the committee on prisoners of war, Darya Morozova.
“Final lists for the exchange have been agreed upon, it’s going to be a 65-for-65 exchange,” Morozova said, RIA Novosti reported.
Loud artillery fire has been heard in the west of Donetsk, a RIA Novosti correspondent in the city reports. Judging by the sounds, heavy-gauge weapons are being used. The anti-government forces say that the shelling is taking place in the vicinity of the airport.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Valeriy Geletey claims Kiev has identified 107 Ukrainian servicemen that died at Ilovaisk in Ukraine’s Donetsk region.
“We've lost many patriots, more than 107 people. Currently 107 people... probably more will be identified, but the figure now stands at 107 people. We have lost the best patriots,” said Geletey in an interview with Ukraine's Channel 5.
Earlier, the Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office reported the death of at least 200 Ukrainian soldiers to the south-east of Donetsk.
The last truck from Russia’s second humanitarian aid convoy to the Eastern Ukrainian city of Lugansk has returned home after delivering its cargo.
All vehicles had reached the Ukrainian-Russian border without incidents and the last of them crossed the border in the direction of Russia at around 6:30 pm local time (2:30 pm GMT). Early on Saturday, a convoy of 245 trucks colored in white paint crossed the border and headed to Lugansk to bring much needed relief supplies to the residents of the war-torn city.
13 September 2014
Donetsk People’s Republic will exchange approximately 65 captured government soldiers for the same number of their own fighters on Sunday, DPR officials have told Russia’s RIA news agency. A prisoner swap was agreed as part of the ceasefire the two sides signed last week.
Ukrainian Defense Minister Valery Geletey has posted on Facebook his initiative to test military officers of the General Staff and commanders with a lie detector. After that, he said, some dismissals may follow.
Ukraine’s National Security Council spokesman Andrey Lysenko has praised the “positive results” of the ceasefire between Kiev and militia forces in the southeast of the country.
“Now in a relaxed situation we can free our captives, regroup our forces, strengthen them,” Lysenko said.
The Ukrainian army and the Donetsk militia will carry out another exchange of prisoners on Sunday, RIA Novosti reports. On September 11, both sides each returned 36 prisoners.
Heavy artillery fire has been reported around Donetsk and a large plume of black smoke is hanging over the city’s airport, Reuters reports. Earlier, the Ukrainian military said that rebels fired on their forces overnight in the vicinity of the airport, the news agency reported, citing its reporter there.
The first group of trucks with humanitarian aid for Lugansk, eastern Ukraine has left the besieged city and is heading back to Russia, RIA Novosti news agency reported.
The trucks have delivered food, medicine, water purification equipment, power generators and other supplies.
The first trucks of Russia’s second convoy carrying humanitarian aid for devastated areas of eastern Ukraine have started arriving in the Lugansk Region, Itar-Tass reported. The entire convoy is currently in Ukraine after completing its border crossing.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) – which accompanied the first Russian shipment of humanitarian aid to Ukraine – is not attending the second, ICRC spokeswoman Anastasia Isyuk told Itar-Tass.
“The ICRC has never been officially notified of the agreement between Russia and Ukraine on the achievement of the technical arrangements for this convoy,” she said. “Consequently, the ICRC is not involved in assisting in the delivery of goods.”
Previously, the Red Cross said that it is ready to facilitate the delivery of the second shipment of Russian humanitarian aid but stressed that it is first necessary for Moscow and Kiev to agree on all the "technical aspects."
12 September 2014
Heavy fighting is being heard in the center of Donetsk, RIA Novosti reports from the ground. Rounds fired from automatic weapons are being heard in the vicinity of the city’s Lenin Square. Earlier it was reported that powerful artillery fire can be heard from the Donetsk airport near the western outskirts of the city.
Ukraine needs to store another 5 billion cubic meters of gas to have enough heat for the winter, the Prime Minister of Ukraine, Arseny Yatsenyuk, said in an interview with Ukrainian TV "Channel 5."
"17 billion cubic meters – this is the maximum that we have accumulated. We need an additional 5 billion cubic meters of gas to get through the winter," said the prime minister.
The first 33 trucks carrying Russia’s humanitarian aid for Ukraine have passed through Russia’s ‘Donetsk’ checkpoint, local customs spokesman Rayan Farukshin told RIA Novosti. Two technical convoy cars also went with the first group bringing the total number of vehicles to 35. While the convoy is now effectively on Ukraine's territory, it has to pass the Ukrainian customs to get cleared for further movement.
First 33 trucks with Russia’s humanitarian aid for Ukraine has entered Russia’s ‘Donetsk’ checkpoint, local customs spokesman Rayan Farukshin told RIA Novosti. He said customs officers are currently carrying out all necessary “customs operations.”
With self-defense troops in #Ilovaysk. The silence before the storm - they don't think #ceasefire will last. pic.twitter.com/uy13IJnNHc
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 12, 2014
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has called an emergency meeting of the country’s National Security and Defense Council later on Friday, the Obozrevatel website said, citing sources. The meeting’s agenda is not yet known.
OSCE observers stationed at two Russian border checkpoints haven’t witnessed any movements of military hardware into Ukraine, Paul Picard, the acting chief observer of the mission told journalists.
“We saw no military vehicles passing through the Donetsk and Gukovo checkpoints, which fall under our mandate,” he said. “We saw helicopters patrolling the border as well as planes and drones. But their numbers have decreased.”
The official added that there is increased civilian traffic across the border, which results in long queues forming at the checkpoints, especially on the Russian side heading towards Ukraine. Travelers told Picard and his colleagues that they go into Russia’s Rostov Region due to a shortage of food on the Ukrainian side of the border.
11 September 2014
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has reiterated that Russian troops have not been in Ukraine and they are not there now. However, there have been volunteers from Russia, spokesman Aleksandr Lukashevich said.
“The Russian army is not fighting there. There are volunteers who could not stay away from those events happening in Donetsk and Lugansk regions,” he said.
At the same time, he said that no one was paying attention to foreign mercenaries fighting in Eastern Ukraine.
“No one questions on which basis, under which international legal norms, mercenaries are fighting on the side of the regular army of Ukraine,” Lukashevich said.
Ukraine's National Security Council (SNBO) has reinforced its forces at the frontline in the southeast of the country, its spokesman Andrey Lysenko said.
#Ukrainian army opened fire in south-west #Donetsk, damaging several houses.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 11, 2014
The shaky ceasefire holds in eastern Ukraine, but there is little certainty that it will lead to peace and not renewed hostilities, rebel fighters told RT’s Paula Slier. They fear that Kiev loyalist troops will use the lull to regroup and attack again.
The International Committee for the Red Cross needs signed permission from both Ukraine and Russia to start the delivery of the second Russian humanitarian aid convoy to eastern Ukraine, Bruno Husquinet, deputy head of the ICRC regional delegation to Russia, Belarus, and Moldova, told journalists.
He added that Russia did file a request to the ICRC to take charge of the convoy.
The trucks with some 2,000 tons of aid, including food, medicine and water treatment equipment, have been stranded in the Russian city of Donetsk on the border with Ukraine for almost a week. Russian Deputy Emergencies Minister Vladimir Stepanov said Thursday “there has not been a movement made” to let it in.
The delivery of humanitarian aid into war-torn Donetsk and Lugansk Regions was part of the ceasefire agreement reached last week by representatives of Kiev and the local militias with the help of Russia and the OSCE.
10 September 2014
The European Commission suspended compensation to producers of fruits and vegetables affected by the Russian sanctions, due to the large amount of claims authorities received, a source in one of the European institutions told Itar-tass.
"Providing assistance is temporarily suspended due to the overestimated number and volume of requests," said the source. According to him, the Commission received requests in excess of 100 million euros from Poland alone, while the entire amount of aid offered under the August 18 package is 125 million euros. According to the estimates of the European Commission, restricting exports to Russia will cost EU farmers € 5 billion.
INBOX: Ukrainian President Poroshenko will address a joint meeting of Congress next Thursday, ac'd to office of @SpeakerBoehner. #ukraine
— Ed O'Keefe (@edatpost) September 10, 2014
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has held a telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, during which the sides discussed issues of human rights and ways to find solutions for humanitarian problems in eastern Ukraine.
The secretary general stressed "the importance of proper monitoring and verification" of the ceasefire in the south-east of Ukraine, the website of the Ukrainian leader reports.
Ban also said that "the UN is working with the OSCE in order to strengthen this monitoring," adding that "diplomatic steps are essential for the establishment of peace" in Ukraine.
Poroshenko, for his part, stressed the need to increase the numbers of the OSCE monitoring mission.
In addition, the Ukrainian president stressed that early parliamentary and local elections will provide the basis for a “political process that will ensure a sustainable peace process in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions of Ukraine."
Around 1,500 foreign volunteers have joined the self-defense militia in the Donetsk region, according to Boris Litvinov, chairman of the Supreme Council of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
“According to my information, there are about 10-15 per cent of them [foreign volunteers] there," Litvinov told reporters in Donetsk. He said that the majority came from Russia, but there were also volunteers from Germany, France and Israel.
A total “about 3,000 to 4,000” volunteers fought alongside the militia during the months of the conflict, but “many of them have left,” Litvinov said.
Ukrainian president, Petro Poroshenko, will address a joint meeting of the US Congress, the congressional leaders said.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, John Boehner, invited Poroshenko to Washington on September 18 for the get together of the House and the Senate.
“Having President Poroshenko address Congress is another signal of our steadfast commitment to the aspirations of his people,” Boehner said in a statement. “It will be an honor and a privilege to welcome him to the United States Capitol.”
Ukrainian border control personnel have started erecting “a wall” at the border with Russia, the press service of Kiev’s military operation announced on its official Facebook account. Known as ‘the Wall Project’, is meant to equip a reinforced barrier between the two neighbors.
Security forces are planning to arrange a total of 1,500km of trenches and tunnels, over 8,000 trenches for equipment, 4, 000 of bunkers and 60km fence.
Kiev will not acknowledge any kind of independence of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko told the government. The draft law, which would give a special status for Donetsk and Lugansk Regions as part of the ceasefire agreement, states that they will remain parts of a unitary Ukraine, the president said.
“Everything goes back to Ukraine. There’s no talk about a federalization,” Poroshenko told the ministers.
Meanwhile the regions insist on independence from Kiev.
“Whatever laws Ukraine adopts is Ukraine’s internal business,” First Deputy Prime Minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic Andrey Purgin told RIA Novosti. “We are a sovereign state that hopes to have friendly relations with Ukraine.”
09 September 2014
Russian President Vladimir Putin in a telephone conversation with his Ukrainian counterpart Petro Poroshenko confirmed Russia's readiness to contribute to the peaceful settlement of the crisis in Ukraine, the Kremlin's press service said on Tuesday.
"Vladimir Putin confirmed readiness of the Russian Federation to continue to promote the peaceful settlement of the crisis," the press statement reads.
The presidents also agreed to continue to address the issues that have arisen in connection with the Association Agreement between Kiev and the EU. Putin also noted the importance of a sustainable ceasefire in the southeastern part of the country.
Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has arrived in Moscow, where he will hold a meeting to coordinate the investigation of the Flight MN17 crash in eastern Ukraine.
"Just arrived in Moscow: one more day for joint meetings. Pray that everything goes well," Hussein wrote in his Twitter.
On the eve of his visit to Moscow, Hussein, a group of 30 experts and the Malaysian police held a meeting in Kiev with the head of the investigative team, Vladimir Groisman, Itar-tass reports.
The self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DNR) has published documents containing a declaration of its sovereignty and guidelines on how to hold talks with international organizations.
The document, published by the DNR government’s press service, says all DNR authorities must act according to the sovereignty declaration at international talks, and act on the basis of solving international disputes by peaceful means and the non-use of force.
The decisions were passed by DNR, based on the Minsk contact group consultations on the Ukrainian conflict on September 5.
Ukraine's National Council for radio and television has published a list of Russian channels banned in the country by a Kiev administrative regional court. Fifteen major Russian TV channels, including such networks as Channel One’s world network, RTR-Planet, NTV-MIR, Rossiya-24, Ren-TV, Life News and Russia Today have been banned for rebroadcast on Ukrainian television and the country’s cable networks.
Russia's Foreign Ministry has said the move violated media freedom. The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatovic, has previously said that "banning programming without a legal basis is a form of censorship."
Anti-government fighters are going to hand over to Kiev the remaining 863 Ukrainian prisoners of war by the end of the week, the official website of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic says.
Earlier, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko spoke about 1,200 captured Ukrainian troops being released.
The anti-government forces claim that 311 of their fighters are being held captive by Kiev’s military.
The exchange of prisoners was part of the ceasefire agreement signed between Kiev and the leaders of the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Moscow is counting on negotiations over the DNR’s and LNR’s status to begin shortly, and hopes the ceasefire consolidates, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says.
Moscow expects the ceasefire in Eastern Ukraine to be consolidated over the course of the next few days, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
The ceasefire in eastern Ukraine is largely being observed, with Kiev and self-defense forces ensuring Moscow that they have no plans to break the truce, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated at a press conference, as quoted by RIA Novosti.
08 September 2014
NATO’s deputy secretary-general claims the alliance has “a lot of evidence” of Russian troops crossing the border with Ukraine, including a private video “taken from a trolleybus.” Alexander Vershbow said this while answering a question asked by RT’s Roman Kosarev at a press conference, regarding the credibility of the alliance’s allegations.
“We have a lot of evidence that the [Russian] forces are present there. It’s a combination of satellite imagery, some of which we’ve released, or member states have released. There is other intelligence which is not always releasable, but we have very great confidence in it. We also have on the ground images taken both by international media and private citizens. I saw a video taken from a trolleybus showing a large convoy of Russian tanks, armed personnel carriers rolling along the road between the border and Lugansk. So at the same time, Russia’s denials become more and more ridiculous by the day,” stated Vershbow.
In the midst of the Ukraine crisis, NATO plans to reverse the decline of defense spending and to move toward two percent of GDP guideline in 10 years, Alexander Vershbow, US ambassador and deputy secretary-general of the organization, said during a press conference with Russian media.
Vershbow noted that Germany “announced a very important initiative at the summit – the framework nation concept which will promote hopefully a more efficient acquisition of defense capabilities by a group of nations that will be cooperating together multinational[ly].”
RT's Roman Kosarev reminded Vershbow that Germany's minister of defense, Ursula Gertrud Von der Leyen, said in an interview to local ARD TV channel on Monday that Berlin is not planning to increase the defense budget from the current 1.3 percent to the two percent suggested by NATO.
“As I am reminded, Minister Von der Leyen also said [that] looking several years into the future, if the German army is to take on more tasks as it is going to have to do as a result of the summit, then the German parliament will have to review the defense budget,” Vershbow stated.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Petro Poroshenko have discussed, in a telephone conversation, steps towards the peaceful settlement of the situation in southeastern Ukraine, the Kremlin press service reports.
President Petro Poroshenko has said that Kiev had agreed with a number of NATO member states on arms supplies to Ukraine.
“We managed to agree with a range of NATO states on direct supplies of modern weapons to Ukraine, which will help us protect ourselves and win,” he said, according to the presidential website. “Even though we only count on ourselves, financial and technical military aid is vitally needed. And we will get it.”
On Sunday, presidential aide Yury Lutsenko, citing Poroshenko, said on Facebook that the US, France, Italy, Poland and Norway would supply modern weapons to Ukraine. The agreements were brokered at the NATO summit in Wales, he wrote.
However, four of the five NATO states he referred to denied that any such deal had been reached.
Rebels in eastern Ukraine have handed over 1,200 prisoners of war to Kiev, President Petro Poroshenko said.
“Within the past four days we managed to free 1,200 Ukrainian prisoners of war,” he said, while on a visit to the city of Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine.
The exchange of captured troops was agreed upon between Kiev and rebels during a meeting in Minsk last week.
President Petro Poroshenko is on a working visit to Mariupol in southeastern Ukraine.
“This is our land and we won’t give it to anyone,” he said, his press-secretary Svyatoslav Tsegolko quoted him as saying on Twitter. “After our visit was announced at 13.30, shelling of our checkpoints began,” the president added.
Цю нашу землю ми нікому не віддамо. - Порошенко в Маріуполі. pic.twitter.com/ZpVXKSMcHK
— Svyatoslav Tsegolko (@STsegolko) September 8, 2014
Ukraine has introduced passport checks at the border with Crimea, according to the Itar-Tass news agency.
Crimea's acting head, Sergei Aksenov, said that by introducing passport control on the border with Crimea, Ukraine had made a step towards recognizing the peninsula as part of the Russian territory.
"If these procedures are gathering momentum, it means we are going in the right direction. It is the right decision," Aksenov said.
The exchange of prisoners has already started, according to the representative of Ukraine’s Council for National Security and Defense, Andrey Lysenko.
“Since Ukrainian President Poroshenko received the information at the beginning of the peace process, he has taken the issue of prisoners’ exchange under his special control,” Lysenko explained.
“The process has already started, it’s underway. A center was created in Ukraine’s security service, and the data on our military men appears there daily,” Lysenko continued.
Donetsk People’s Republic has confirmed that the prisoners’ exchange has started, and 28 people have been transferred to Kiev, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.
The ceasefire in Ukraine has largely held but remains shaky, according to Ambassador Thomas Greminger of Switzerland, current chair of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
"Overall the ceasefire held even though it is still shaky," Greminger told an extraordinary meeting of the 57-nation OSCE, Reuters reports.
The official said the next days would be crucial.
Leaders of #Lugansk and #Donetsk again re-iterate they are committed to keeping the #ceasefire
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 8, 2014
An exchange of prisoners of war between Ukrainian and anti-government fighters in Ukraine’s east could be hampered by the fact Kiev has not yet come up with a list of who they actually hold captive, according to interim Security Minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, Leonid Baranov, who spoke to RIA Novosti.
“The thing is we still have not got from Kiev the lists of those they are going to release. There’s a fear that we’ll release everyone and Kiev will try to deceive us,” Baranov said.
The anti-government forces claim they have captured a thousand troops and pro-Kiev militants.
Ukrainian troops violated a ceasefire with seven attacks on Sunday, injuring both civilians and a the anti-government fighters, according to officials in the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, cited by RIA Novosti.
The town of Krasny Partizan was among the worst hit, according to the same source. It was reportedly attacked by the Aidar volunteer battalion, fighting alongside Ukrainian troops. The town is said to have been shelled by Grad rocket systems. Ten civilians were injured.
07 September 2014
The Russian government has allocated nearly one billion rubles (US$27 million) to help Ukrainian refugees in Russia, said the country’s Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev.
“This is a humanitarian tragedy, we are taking this into account and have already added the means to the regions’ budgets. And it’s not a small amount. Recently I had to implement a number of decisions in relation to the financing of refugees already equaling to almost a billion rubles,” Medvedev said in an interview with Vedomosti.
According to data from Russia’s Federal Migration Service, around 820,000 Ukrainian citizens have entered Russian territory since April 1.
The OSCE has adopted a new mechanism to monitor ceasefire violations in eastern Ukraine. The organization “has established an initial clearing-house mechanism among the parties to deal with reported violations of the ceasefire and other incidences.”
The OSCE noted that it has redeployed 59 specialists “with particular experience in the monitoring of ceasefires” in the last two days and is “now in the process of rapidly recruiting further monitors.”
There are also discussions of introducing drones to help the observers with monitoring.
There has been renewed artillery fighting around Donetsk airport, witnesses told Russian media. Explosions are being heard and witnesses reported seeing objects that were lighting up quickly.
Earlier, self-defense forces claimed that the Ukrainian military was the one behind the new wave of violence. Meanwhile, Kiev’s military alleged that self-defense forces fired at Mariupol.
The local militia in Donetsk freed 15 Ukrainian soldiers from Cherkas and the 40th battalion of the ground defense, said Boris Filatov, deputy head of the Dnepropetrovsk region, on his Facebook page. The process was guided by the head of the center of the prisoners’ exchange – Col. Gen. of Ukraine’s army reserve, Vladimir Rubin – according to Filatov. “The Donetsk side released captives at our demand without exchange of additional conditions,” he added.
Azov commander to me: "They shelling our posts constantly, we have dead & wounded. We didn't reply, now we will. Consider ceasefire over."
— Shaun Walker (@shaunwalker7) September 7, 2014
The members of the contact group on the resolution of the Ukrainian crisis, who signed the ceasefire protocol on Friday in Minsk, provisionally agreed to meet in a week, Aleksandr Zakharchenko, PM of the Donetsk People’s Republic told Kommersant FM radio station.
Kiev and the local militia in southeastern Ukraine are observing the ceasefire, said Vladimir Dzhabarov, deputy head of the committee on international affairs of the Upper House (Federation Council) of Russia’s parliament as cited by RIA Novosti.
“From time to time there are reports of shooting but most likely they are carried out by [“Right Sector” battalions of Igor] Kolomoysky, mercenaries and looters,” he added.
Dzhabarov expressed hope that neither of the conflicting sides will succumb to provocations.
It’s been quiet in Lugansk for two nights in a row with no shooting being heard, the city council reports on its website. However, there is still no electricity, water supply or communications.
Municipal services are working to repair infrastructure and facilities in Lugansk, the council said.
Sporadic violations of the ceasefire reached on Friday are happening in the Donetsk region.
Rockets destroyed several houses in the village of Spartak, north of Donetsk, reports RT’s Paula Slier who was working at the site when the attack began.
I ask him about ceasefire -he laughs. Everyone here looks at me incredulously when I ask them about the ceasefire. Seems ridiculous question
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 7, 2014
“Driving past entire rows of houses that have gone up in smoke,” she twitted. Fire brigades were putting out flames while the locals assisted them by pouring buckets of water, which sometimes made no difference as the shelling left almost nothing.
RT’s crew had to leave the village for security reasons. “Driving like mad” to escape possible renewal of the shelling, they returned to Donetsk city center. “Life here carries on as normal,” Slier writes.
CONFIRMED: Few Grad missiles hit Donetsk Airport. Gun-fire heard nonstop.
— Jerry Liet (@jerryliet) September 7, 2014
A 33-year old woman has died of wounds in hospital after overnight shelling in the port of Mariupol, eastern Ukraine, local media report, citing city authorities and medics. Three more people are being treated for injuries. It’s unclear at present where the shelling came from.
27 people and 53 have been wounded in the past three weeks in the town of Kirovskoye, population 31,000, located 50 km away from #Donetsk.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 7, 2014
Ukrainian forces are concentrating a large number of troops and military hardware near Gorlovka, some 47 kilometers from the city of Donetsk, reports the RIA news agency citing local militia’s headquarters. A long convoy of military vehicles is moving on the road connecting Mironovka and Debaltsevo settlements.
Self-defense militia forces intel has information that the Ukrainian troops concentrated near Donetsk possess at least 47 tanks, 15 Shilka armored self-propelled anti-aircraft vehicles, 7 Tochka-U (NATO designation – Scarab) tactical ballistic missile complexes, 6 Grad multiple rocket launch complexes and one Smerch heavy multiple rocket launcher.
There have been reports about skirmishes near Donetsk international airport, where a group of armed men of unknown national identity has been holed up for quite a time.
Residents of #Donetsk report hearing shooting and shelling in the #airport area.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 7, 2014
06 September 2014
Sporadic shooting and artillery fire have been reported near and in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Mariupol despite the ceasefire, with both local self-defense forces and Ukrainian military troops at the scene accusing each other of breaching the truce.
Reuters cited an unnamed Ukrainian officer as saying that there was an artillery attack on Mariupol, which Kiev forces occupy.
RIA Novosti, meanwhile, cited the self-defense HQ as saying that Ukrainian forces shelled and stormed the small but strategically located town of Telmanovo. The militia’s positions came under shelling, after which a large convoy of armored vehicles entered the town, a spokesman for the HQ told the agency.
Dozens of people protested against the policy conducted by Kiev authorities before the awards ceremony at the Venice Film Festival, Itar-Tass reported. Demonstrators marched in front of the Casino and Cinema Palace, which hosts the ceremony, shouting slogans which denounced biased media coverage of the Ukrainian crisis.
A similar demonstration was held on Châtelet Square in Paris. Over 100 people gathered to support the self-proclaimed people’s republics in southeast Ukraine. The protesters denounced the US and Kiev’s policies, shouting “No to war.”
The Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) has handed over the lists of Ukrainian troops taken captive and those who have gone missing to representatives of the self-proclaimed People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Militia forces accepted the documents on Friday and promised to compare them with their own lists in order to exchange information later, the head of SBU’s investigation department Vasily Vovk told journalists, according to the Ukrinform agency.
This morning we sent aid trucks to #Lugansk but shelling forced them to turn back at Staniza Luganska. #Ukraine
— ICRC (@ICRC) September 6, 2014
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s leader Petro Poroshenko have agreed in a phone conversation that the ceasefire in eastern Ukraine is generally being observed, the Kremlin press service reports.They also underlined the necessity for the situation to be monitored by the OSCE.
The two presidents said that further steps were required to make the ceasefire more durable, according to a statement from Poroshenko's office. Additionally, Putin and Poroshenko stressed the need “for cooperation in providing Ukrainian and international humanitarian help.”
#Poroshenko refuses to name #NATO countries offering #Kiev military aid.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 6, 2014
The transfer of military prisoners from Donetsk People’s Republic should take place on Saturday, and from Kiev on Monday, according to the DNR premier Aleksandr Zakharchenko.
He also said the ceasefire agreement isn’t being observed fully by Kiev, as strikes and fighting are continuing.
I haven't heard any shelling where I am in #Donetsk since yesterday evening when #ceasefire went into effect #Ukraine
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) September 6, 2014
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is ready to cooperate with Moscow on getting the second humanitarian aid convoy to eastern Ukraine, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov told RIA Novosti in an interview. The plan is to deliver the aid via this time.
“We have already contacted the leaders of the International Committee of the Red Cross who were in general positive regarding our efforts and expressed readiness to cooperate in the delivery of humanitarian aid. We are now discussing the practical details of this operation and expect it to be accomplished,” Gatilov said.
05 September 2014
The EU has welcomed the ceasefire agreement in eastern Ukraine and is hoping that it is the first step towards a political solution to the crisis, ex-EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said in a statement.
“The ceasefire must now be respected and followed by all parties,” the statement said.
All forces of Kiev’s anti-terrorist operation have ceased fire in eastern Ukraine, Andrey Lysenko, spokesman for the National Security and Defense Council, told Interfax-Ukraine.
Regarding the exchange of prisoners, “we are ready to start the process of POWs exchange soon...it is likely to start happening tomorrow (September 6),” he added.
The future status of the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk was not discussed at the meeting of the contact group on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis in Minsk, Igor Plotnitsky, PM of Lugansk People’s Republic, said.
“We didn’t get there as we mainly talked about ceasefire,” he said.
There is not much confidence that an agreement on the truce will be reached, Plotnitsky said, adding that “during the talks we realized that on both sides there are those who only want people to return to their homes.”
The contact group on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis has agreed on three main issues during the talks in Minsk: the ceasefire and withdrawal of troops, the exchange of prisoners, and the provision of humanitarian assistance, OSCE's special envoy to Ukraine, Heidi Tagliavini, told the press.
Russia’s ambassador to Ukraine, Mikhail Zurabov, said that a special infrastructure for monitoring and control of the ceasefire is to be created.
The shelling continues in the city of Donetsk despite the ceasefire, which was announced in southeastern Ukraine from 15:00GMT on Friday, the RIA-Novosti news agency reports, adding that it’s currently unclear, which side is firing.
Reuters also reported that three explosions were heard north of Donetsk, just minutes after the truce came into force.
Kiev and the rebels have swapper prisoner lists already, ahead of an all-for-all exchange of captives that both sides desire, said Leonid Kuchma, former Ukrainian president, and Kiev's chief negotiator in the Minsk talks.
Both Ukraine’s National Security Council, and the command staff of the DPR have announced that they have stopped firing since the ceasefire came into force at 6 p.m. local time, despite reports of artillery fire after the deadline.
A freelance reporter for Crimea’s state run broadcaster, Anna Mokhovaya, has disappeared in southeastern Ukraine, a chief editor told journalists at a press conference. Mokhovaya, a Russia citizen, disappeared on August 24 while on the way to cover events in Donbass. According to her company, she was seized by the Security Service of Ukraine or SBU in the city of Izum near Kharkov. “This is official. SBU is not willing to negotiate,” the broadcaster stated. Russian law enforcement are taking part in the search for the journalist, the company said.
Artillery fire can be heard on the outskirts of the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, reports RIA Novosti. Kiev troops are shelling residential areas, while self-defense forces are attacking the city airport where the Ukrainian soldiers have camped.
Earlier, one resident was killed in the fire. The shells also hit the buildings of local school and planetarium.
04 September 2014
OSCE observers reported heavy fighting around Mariupol in eastern Ukraine, following their visit to the area.
“The situation in Mariupol and the surrounding area raises concern due to increased military activity, primarily to the east of Mariupol city,” the latest OSCE report said.
The observer mission said there was heavy fighting in Shirokino (24km east of Mariupol city) and Bezimenne (34km east of Mariupol city), with casualties reported.
Burning fields were spotted by the OSCE on both sides of the road leading to Shirokino. The electric power station was also destroyed and the village was left without electricity.
“Local residents are nervous and fear that Mariupol may be attacked soon,” the report stated.
US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has promised further support for Ukraine’s military action during the meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart, Valeriy Galetey, on the sidelines of the NATO summit.
“Hagel today praised the actions of the Ukrainian armed forces in their current engagements in eastern Ukraine and pledged continued US support for their efforts,” Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby said in a statement.
In return, Galetey thanked the US for its non-lethal aid, worth millions of dollars.
A Russian television film crew came under fire in Donetsk as the Ukrainian army continued its assault despite talks of a ceasefire. The journalists were from REN TV. So far, there are no reports of casualties.
"A few days ago messages began to appear on social networks that the REN TV crew came under mortar fire around Lugansk. Today a correspondent from the channel has been personally convinced that in spite of attempts to broker a truce, Ukrainian security forces have no intentions to stop shooting,” REN TV said in a statement.
The militia in southeastern Ukraine has started storming the city of Mariupol, according to people on the scene. People are being evacuated, the Itar-Tass news agency reports.
“The fighting is in the Vostochny [Eastern] neighborhood. There are very powerful explosions. People are evacuating to prepared shelters,” witnesses said.
The fighting started earlier on Thursday. Kiev armed forces said they managed to defeat the rebels. They destroyed some of their armored personnel carriers and killed personnel.
At the same time, militia leaders reported they had carried out attacks against the Kiev army.
It is up to individual NATO members to decide whether to supply arms to Ukraine, which is battling an armed revolt by self-defense forces, NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said on Thursday.
"NATO as an alliance is not involved in delivery of equipment because we do not possess military capabilities," Rasmussen told a news conference at a NATO summit.
"These are possessed by individual allies, so such decisions are national decisions and we are not going to interfere with that," Rasmussen said when asked if NATO would supply arms to Ukraine. (Reuters)
Whether the European Union will unveil a new raft of sectoral sanctions against Russia will depend on the result of the upcoming talks between NATO and Petro Poroshenko, and the Minsk ceasefire negotiation meeting on Friday, according to Francois Hollande.
"Tomorrow at the European Council ... we will announce sanctions and put them into action if there is no progress on Ukraine, but everything will depend on the coming hours," the French leader said ahead of a meeting with the Ukrainian President, during the NATO session in Wales.
Hollande also said that the $1.6 billion deal to supply Russia with two Mistral helicopter carrier, frozen by Paris on Wednesday, could be reanimated if a diplomatic solution is found in Ukraine.
The Council of Europe secretary general, Thorbjorn Jagland, has praised the 7-step peace plan for Ukraine proposed by Vladimir Putin on Wednesday.
The Russian president’s initiative is likely to yield good results, he said, but warned about radicals on both sides who would try to hamper a peaceful solution.
During his visit to Moscow, Jagland also expressed hopes for Kiev's active participation in the trilateral Russia-Ukraine-EU contact group "for final and comprehensive settlement of the situation in the southeast of Ukraine. Of course, on condition that the legitimate rights of people living there are secured in full and unconditionally."
Moscow is waiting for a response to Vladimir Putin’s 7-step peace plan on de-escalating the Ukrainian crisis from both sides involved in the conflict, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
“We expect that the subsequent reaction will come from Kiev and the self-defense forces,” Lavrov said. “Russia has done and will continue doing everything it can to initiating dialogue, starting with the most important task of announcing a ceasefire.”
However, the minister warned about the “war party,” which immediately intensifies its role every time “a glimmer of hope to change the situation from military confrontation to a political settlement” appears in Ukraine.
Vladimir Putin’s seven-step plan to stop hostilities in eastern Ukraine aims to help Kiev authorities and self-defense forces in the region to coordinate actions in de-escalation of Ukraine’s crisis, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
“[We] hope that the calls [of Putin over Ukraine] will be heard first of all in Kiev, Lugansk and Donetsk,” said Lavrov. “We will, together with OSCE, help the conflicting sides to advance in stabilizing the situation [in the country].”
The Ukrainian crisis cannot be eliminated by military force, Ilkka Kanerva, the president of the Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE said during the meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
He added that the OSCE delegation is not going to take an aggressive position towards Russia.
American Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is calling on Kiev to thoroughly investigate the death of Rossiya Segodnya agency’s photojournalist Andrey Stenin.
"We condemn the killing of Andrey Stenin, which calls attention once again to the dangers of covering the conflict in Ukraine from any side," CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. "We urge Ukrainian authorities to do their utmost to conduct an effective probe into the circumstances of his death, and call on pro-Russia separatists to allow investigators access to the territory where Stenin was reportedly found.”
03 September 2014
Two citizens of Czech Republic died in southeastern Ukraine on August 12 while fighting on the side of the self-defense forces, Czech state television cited a sister of one of the victims. The two individuals were identified as Ivo Stejskal and Vojteh Glinka. Both have died near the village of Miusinsk.
WATCH RT's Paula Slier dodging Ukrainian army bullets with anti-government fighters:
EU has called for an independent investigation into the death of Rossiya Segodnya photojournalist Andrey Stenin in Ukraine, Maja Kocijancic, a spokeswoman for the EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, has said.
“The reported death of Russian journalist Andrey Stenin, who went missing in Eastern Ukraine on 5 August, demonstrates the gravity of the situation,” she said. “Safety of journalists is a fundamental pillar of the right to media freedom and we call for independent investigation into this case, as we have done in the past for other reported cases of violations of journalists' rights.”
Russia is calling for a thorough investigation into the death of photojournalist Andrey Stenin as well as into crimes against other journalists and civilians in Ukraine, Russian Foreign Ministry’s commissioner for Human Rights Konstantin Dolgov told Izvestiya newspaper.
"There should be a full investigation, not just into the death of Rossiya Segodnya’s photojournalist Andrey Stenin, but into all the other crimes, including the burning of people in Odessa and the shooting in Mariupol on May 9,” Dolgov said in an interview to be published on Thursday.
“Ukrainian authorities themselves should take all necessary measures, including punishment of those responsible.”
Anti-Kiev militias say they are ready to lay down arms, but only if the same is done by all the government units fighting in the east of the country, said DPR Prime Minister Aleksandr Zakharchenko.
The political leader of the self-proclaimed republic noted that Kiev will have to obtain compliance from irregulars, such as Right Sector volunteer battalions, and mercenaries, who are also fighting on the side of the government.
“These have previously sabotaged existing deals,” said Zakharchenko.
The DPR leader said that the recent upturn in the rebels’ fortunes would improve the chances of striking a deal with Petro Poroshenko’s government.
Donetsk is once again without water, after shelling hit a sanitation plant in the city. According to the Donetsk City Council, “At 20.30 (Moscow Time) shelling hit the water purification plant, and water is no longer getting to the water pipes.” The press service also stated that repairs could not take place because of the constant bombardment, which makes it too dangerous to be fixed. At present, fighting is taking place in Yasynovata, just north of the city.
Russian Prime Minister Medvedev said Russia was ready to discuss gas cooperation with Ukraine with two conditions. Ukraine must pay back its enormous debt and the average year price must be $385 for 1,000 cubic meters. But if Ukraine doesn't need a discount, Russia can demand the previous price of $485 for 1,000 cubic meters, Medvedev said.
Kiev is planning a ‘Wall’ project, which involves the construction of ‘real state border’ with Russia, said Ukraine’s Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk.
“We are starting the Wall project, the building of real state border between Ukraine and Russia,” he told the Ukrainian Parliament (Verkhovna Rada).
Ukraine’s PM hasn’t released more details of the project yet.
Presidents Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko have discussed the measures to stop bloodshed in Ukraine, said Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
“The discussion concerning the military and humanitarian crisis in Ukraine was continued,” he said. “The heads of states exchanged their opinions concerning what should be done first to stop the bloodshed in the country’s southeast.”
He added that the opinions of both presidents on how to get out of the crisis situation in the country coincide.
A significant part of the Ukrainian army has reportedly left the territory of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, according to local self-defense forces, Novorossiya news agency reported.
Troops have allegedly left their posts along the Donetsk-Mariupol highway. It was not immediately clear what caused the reported maneuvering.
02 September 2014
Ukrainian volunteer police battalions will use 12.7 mm heavy machine guns designed in the late 1930s in a special operation in eastern Ukraine, advisor to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, Anton Gerashchenko, said on his Facebook page.
“Right now heavy weapons are being collected and distributed through the Department of Coordination to volunteer battalions,” he said. “We also received a large quantity of heavy machine guns ‘DshK,' 12.7 mm caliber, from 1937, issued between 1950-1970.”
The video taken by a camera-equipped drone shows horrifying pictures of a completely destroyed village in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine.
Before the intense fighting devastated Stepanovka, in the Shakhtersk region, in July and August, the village had over 1,500 inhabitants. Now, only 2 remain. Shelling can still occasionally be heard there.
More than 1 million Ukrainians have been displaced by the conflict in southeastern Ukraine, the United Nations estimated.
The number includes 814,000 Ukrainians, who are now residing in Russia as well as thousands in the Baltics, Moldova, and the European Union.
The total figure also includes 260,000 people who were forced to leave their homes and are displaced within the country, while the violent clashes between the militia and the Kiev army continue.
"I mean 260,000 in Ukraine, it's a low estimate, 814,000 in Russia, then you add the rest ...Belarus, Moldova, the European Union," Vincent Cochetel, director of the UNHCR's bureau for Europe, told reporters in Geneva.
Of 814,000 Ukrainian nationals who have entered Russia this year, 260,000 have applied for some sort of protective status. The remaining 554,000 have arrived on the basis of a visa-free regime, which allows them to stay in the country for up to 270 days.
In all, 4,106 Ukrainians have applied for asylum in EU countries including Poland, Germany and Sweden, UNHCR figures show. Some 380 Ukrainians have sought asylum in Belarus.
The city of Lugansk in eastern Ukraine is on the verge of a “potential humanitarian catastrophe” as there is no water and electricity, OSCE concluded in its report issued on September 1. Only one of the city’s hospitals remains operational and able to admit patients.
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) said that drinking water was distributed in cisterns as shelling had damaged the city’s water supply system.
However, speaking to SMM, representatives of the self-declared Lugansk People’s Republic (LNR) “downplayed the seriousness of the damage” and stated that the problem could be solved.
The SMM met with representatives of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Lugansk, who stated that about 250,000 people remained in the city, whose population prior to the conflict was estimated to be approximately 420,000.
The prime minister of the Czech Republic has criticized the EU’s policy of imposing sanctions on Russia, saying it was “a very risky business.”
"The problem is that if sanctions are escalated now, there will be a reaction from Russia and we are not able to estimate at this point what impact the next wave of sanctions by Russia against EU countries will have," Prime Minister Bohuslav Sobotka said on Tuesday. "If we are entangled in an extensive and lengthy war [of sanctions] between the EU and Russia, both Europe and Russia will pay dearly for it," Sobotka added.
During the weekend’s EU summit in Brussels, Sobotka secured the right for his country to disagree with part of the EU's proposal for tightening sanctions against Russia.
The Czech Republic wants to modify some parts in the draft of the EU’s proposed measures.
"On Wednesday, the government will approve the mandate for negotiators and set priorities for the Czech Republic in view of the comment on this proposal of the European Commission (EC). On the basis of the first reading of the EC´s draft, I can say that we as the Czech Republic will have comments," Sobotka told reporters.
All the assets of Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoisky in Russia may be frozen, said Vladimir Markin, an official from the Russian Investigative Committee.
Earlier on Tuesday, one of the buildings belonging to Kolomoisky was seized.
“This fate awaits all Kolomoisky’s other properties in Russia,” Markin added.
Kolomoisky who was appointed by the Kiev authorities as governor of the eastern region of Dnepropetrovsk, is accused of murder, kidnapping and other crimes.
Protesters have gathered outside the Ukrainian parliament building as MPs started their seventh and last assembly, which is rounding up its fourth session.
Several hundred people are rallying on Grushevskogo Street in central Kiev, holding banners and chanting anti-government slogans.
Among protesters there are mothers of National Guard fighters. They demand that President Petro Poroshenko return their sons home from the volatile regions in eastern Ukraine.
Their banners read “We are for peace in the world” and “Incompetent commanders out!”
They also call on the president to meet with them.
Members of Svoboda (Freedom) party, who also gathered outside Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada, are protesting for the “lustration”, or purge, of the government.
So far there have been no violations reported. The protest also has not caused any traffic disruption.
The number of displaced by the Ukrainian conflict has topped one million, of whom 814,000 are currently seeking shelter in Russia, according to the envoy for UNHCR.
"It's safe to say you have over a million people now displaced as a result of the conflict, internally and externally together," Vincent Cochetel said.
"I mean 260,000 in Ukraine, it's a low estimate, 814,000 in Russia, then you add the rest ... Belarus, Moldova, European Union."
01 September 2014
Ukrainian forces have suffered a series of setbacks, as rebels make a series of advances in the east of the country. Officials have said that 700 soldiers have been forced to withdraw from Lugansk airport and said Ukrainian soldiers had been fired on by “a column of Russian tanks”. Officials also said that 700 soldiers had been taken prisoner.
President Vladimir Putin on Monday accused Ukrainian authorities of unwillingness to start a substantive political dialogue with self-defense forces in the country’s east.
Answering a BBC correspondent’s question in Yakutsk, Putin also said that the aim of self-defense forces is to move Ukrainian armed forces and their artillery from big cities in eastern Ukraine.
The Kiev military has surrounded big cities and is shelling residential neighborhoods by direct fire, the president said, adding that self-defense forces had to step-up their activities because of it.
More than 80 Ukrainian troops have left the blockade near the Donetsk Region town of Ilovaysk, according to Interior Minister’s advisor, Anton Gerashchenko, citing the commander of the ‘Donbass Battalion’ Semen Semenchenko.
“Just now near Ilovaysk 69 more troops of the Donbass battalion have got out of the blockade... Also 11 fighters of the Interior Ministry’s special battalion ‘Svityaz’ and four fighters of the Interior Ministry’s ‘Dnepr-1’ special battalion,” Gerashchenko wrote on Facebook.
31 August 2014
At least one civilian has died as Kiev and militia forces are battling for control of Donetsk airport, RIA Novosti reports from the ground. It is being reported that the main building of the airport is on fire.
Anti-Kiev forces report that they were able to push back Kiev's "punitive" territorial battalion Aydar from Lugansk airport and destroy a number of enemy vehicles.
"During the day, there has been heavy fighting in Lugansk airport. Militia artillery hit enemy positions in the area. We destroyed 2 field fortifications, incapacitated 3 cars and killed five Ukrainian troops,” anti-Kiev forces said in a statement.
Anti-Kiev forces also reported taking control of the nearby villages of Donbass, including Artemovka and Metallist. On Sunday, DPR forces claim to have killed 87 Ukrainian servicemen, destroyed three tanks, six armored cars and eight vehicles with ammunition and fuel.
The forces also announced that they observed a brief cease-fire, where Ukrainian military "carried out the evacuation of personnel" and removed the wounded and the dead from Novokaterinovka, Starobeshevo and Osykovo.
A gas pipeline in Donetsk, east Ukraine has been damaged as a result of continuing shelling, according to the city administration.
Earlier, locals said they heard heavy gunfire in four districts of the city, reports RIA Novosti. A village to the west of Donetsk also came under shelling on Sunday. There have not been immediate reports about casualties.
A Ukrainian naval vessel in the Azov Sea was attacked by artillery from the shore on Sunday, and a rescue operation was under way, a military spokesman for the Ukrainian government said.
Andrey Lysenko said the vessel was a naval cutter. There was no information on the number of people on board.
Rebels claimed responsibility for the attack on social media.(Reuters)
The Donetsk airport is surrounded by self-defense forces, but is still under the control of the Ukrainian army, self-defense representatives told Itar-Tass news agency. “The airport is surrounded, but storming it will be no easy business, as the road accesses to it are mined using radio-controlled mines. Apart from that, the fighting for the airport entails risk for the people in the nearest residential area,” the representative said.
Donetsk residents reported the sound of heavy artillery fire in four districts of the city, according to the city council’s website.
“As of 1pm (08:00 GMT), city residents reported sounds of heavy artillery fire in the Budennovsky, Voroshilovsky, Leninsky and Kirovsky regions of Donetsk,” the statement reads.
Six tanks reportedly captured by self-defense resistance troops and 198 #Ukrainian servicemen disarmed.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 31, 2014
Overnight shelling of Lugansk has left apartment blocks in the south of the city and a market in the east of the city damaged, the local authorities said in a statement, adding that residents are still without electricity, water and phone connections.
Anti-government forces fighting in eastern Ukraine claim they have handed over to Kiev more than 200 captured Ukrainian troops, according to a representative of the “Novorossiya Army.”
“During the night of August 30 and 31, the self-defense forces were maintaining a ceasefire, during which 223 captive servicemen and members of the National Guard were handed over to the Ukrainian side,” the source told Interfax.
He added that the army of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic has prevented an attempt by the National Guard to get heavy vehicles out of an area besieged by anti-government forces.
The “Novorossiya Army” representative said the anti-government forces destroyed two Ukrainian tanks and two armored personnel carriers as a result of fighting near the village of Starobeshevo. Six tanks were reportedly captured by the militia and 198 Ukrainian servicemen were disarmed.
30 August 2014
Ukrainian “Batkivshchina” (“Homeland”) party is set to conduct an urgent meeting of citizens on September 5 to discuss the possibility of a referendum on Ukrainian entry into NATO, party leader Yulia Timoshenko declared on Saturday.
“I am addressing Ukraine’s president, premier, the chairman of the Parliament, to the Ukrainian people to support us in our dedication to carry out all necessary legislative procedures to ensure that the referendum on the NATO entry takes place on the same day as the early parliamentary elections [on October 26],” she said, as quoted by Ukrainian news agency UNIAN.
3 million signatures are needed to introduce the question for referendum.
500 people have participated in an anti-NATO march in Frankfurt am Main. The demonstration also featured photographs from the exhibition “Odessa massacre”, according to a participant of the coordination council of the Odessa social organization “Kulikovo pole” Oleg Musyka, as cited by RIA Novosti.
The exhibition is dedicated to the tragedy in Odessa that happened on May 2, with dozens of anti-Maidan activists dying in a fire. Official data suggested that 48 people died, while other estimates put the number at over 200.
The Ukrainian army has begun an offensive in Lugansk region, at the same time fortifying positions in Mariupol, in the south of the Donetsk region, according to Ukraine’s National Security Council speaker Andrey Lysenko, as quoted by RIA Novosti news agency.
“There’s been an operational exercise carried out in several residential areas in Slavyano-Serb district, and also Krymskoye and Sokolniki villages. Active fighting is going on in the direction of Lugansk,” Lysenko stated.
According to his statement, self-defense forces lost 40 people.
Self-defense forces are in control of the main part of the territory where the MH17 plane crashed. The debris is untouched, and Malaysian experts may come to the location, according to the vice premier of the Donetsk People’s Republic Andrey Purgin.
Rebel forces of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic got engaged in a shoot-out with Ukrainian soldiers in the town of Ilovaysk on Friday.
#Ukrainian army continues shelling of #Donetsk - railway stations came under heavy fire and a building, bus, car were completely burnt out.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 30, 2014
The situation in Ukraine is very serious, and may soon reach "a point of no return," European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in Brussels at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. Barroso added that the EU is not interested in a confrontation with Russia, but expects European leaders to approve a new round of sanctions against Moscow if Russia does not start work towards deescalating the crisis in Ukraine.
The EU was prepared to toughen sanctions against Russia over the Ukraine crisis but also that it wanted a political deal to end the confrontation, Barroso said:
"We are ready to take very strong and clear measures but we are keeping our doors open to a political solution."
He described any tightening of sanctions as intended not to escalate the crisis but to push Moscow to negotiate.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko appealed to the European Union to give an "appropriate response" over Russian forces being brought into Ukraine, his spokesman said in a Twitter post.
Referring to meetings in Brussels between Poroshenko and EU leaders on Saturday, the spokesman said: "Poroshenko expressed the hope that the leaders of EU members will give an appropriate response to the act of aggression towards Ukraine."
"The bringing of Russian forces onto Ukrainian territory requires an appropriate response from the EU." (Reuters)
The US Department of State has warned US citizens against traveling to eastern Ukraine due to escalating fighting between self-defense forces and the Kiev military. "The Department of State warns US citizens of the risks of travel to eastern Ukraine due to ongoing violent clashes between Russia-backed separatists and Ukrainian forces in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk," the State Department said in a statement Friday. US citizens were also advised not to travel to the Crimean Peninsula, “occupied … in support of the Russian Federation's attempted annexation of Crimea,” as well as to the regions of Odessa, Kharkhiv, Zaporizhia and Kherson.
The first 28 Ukrainian troops blockaded in the east of the country by anti-government forces have left the encirclement, according to a Facebook post by Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov.
Several hours earlier, the commander of the Donbass battalion, Semen Semchenko, said Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko and representatives of the anti-government forces in east Ukraine have agreed upon a safe corridor to let the blockaded servicemen out.
On Friday night, the shelling of Donetsk has left the city’s railway station severely damaged, a RIA Novosti correspondent on the ground reports. The first floor of the station building has been partially burned out. The front of a nearby hotel and some pavilions of a nearby market have been badly damaged. One of the missiles hit a trolleybus, setting it on fire. The driver and passengers had time to escape from the burning vehicle.
More than 130,000 Ukrainians have asked for either refugee status or temporary asylum in Russia since the conflict in the country’s east started in April, according to the Federal Migration Service.
“A total of 820,000 Ukrainian citizens have moved to the Russian Federation since April 1, 2014,” officials at the agency told Itar-Tass.
The Ukrainian army is in violation of international law by deploying "Grad" rocket systems in places where civilians live, deputy director of Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia, Rachel Denber said in an interview to the Latvian radio Baltkom.
"We recorded the facts of direct shelling by the Ukrainian military. They also used 'Grad' missile systems, which cannot be used in areas where people live," she said.
The OSCE monitoring mission in Ukraine reported that an 82-year-old woman was reportedly shot by a member of the Ukrainian ‘Aidar’ battalion in the village of Oleksandrivka in the Lugansk region.
“The chief surgeon in Severodonetsk (97 km north-west of Luhansk) hospital confirmed to the SMM that an 82-year-old woman with bullet wounds had been brought to the hospital on 23 August, and was in intensive care,” the mission says.
Aidar Battalion is a detachment of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine that currently fights in the east. The unit with roughly 400 members is gaining fame for looting and killings of civilians in Donetsk and Lugansk regions.
29 August 2014
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko during a telephone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel thanked her for the inclusion of the "Ukrainian issue" on the agenda of the European Council meeting on Saturday. In addition, Poroshenko expressed hope for "decisive action" by the EU against Russia.
More sanctions against Russia will be discussed during the informal meeting between 28 foreign ministers of the EU at Saturday's summit in Milan, including a possible weapons embargo, Danish Foreign Minister Martin Lidegaard told reporters.
“Russia has crossed another line, and I cannot see how that could go by without consequences, and without the EU tightening its sanctions once again,” Lidegaard said, Danish news agency Ritzau quotes.
When asked about a possible weapons embargo, the minister stated the European Union is ready to discuss “any measures,” though only economic, ruling out any military intervention in Ukraine.
Russian activities in Eastern #Ukraine extremely worrying & unacceptable. EU reaction to be discussed at informal now #FAC & #euco#eudk
— Martin Lidegaard (@martinlidegaard) August 29, 2014
Swiss Foreign Minister and OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Didier Burkhalter expressed concern about the escalation of the conflict in Ukraine. At the same time, he stated that reports of Russian personal needs to be investigated before conclusions are made.
“Reports about growing flows of military personnel and military equipment from the Russian Federation into Ukraine were greatly troubling and must be thoroughly investigated,” the OSCE statement reads.
Human Right Watch is calling on the Ukrainian authorities to provide information on the whereabouts of Andrey Stenin, Russiya Segodnya photojournalist, deputy director of Human Rights Watch's Europe and Central Asia, Rachel Denber said in an interview to the Latvian radio Baltkom.
“The rights of journalists in Ukraine violated by both the militia and from the Ukrainian military. The Ukrainian authorities have detained a large number of Russian journalists. Unfortunately, I do not have new information about Andrey Stenin. We call on the Ukrainian authorities to report the whereabouts of Stenin,” she said.
The Donetsk militia has shot down four of the Ukrainian armed forces’ Su-25 planes, the Donetsk People’s Republic HQ said in a statement. Sixty-five Ukrainian military personnel have been killed and wounded and three residential areas have been freed by self-defense forces, the statement said.
Slovakia will oppose new sanctions on Russia at a meeting of EU senior representatives that is to take place Saturday, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said Friday. "Economic sanctions based on unverified data are ineffective and unfair," he added.
A total of 789 military personnel have died in Kiev’s operation in eastern Ukraine since its beginning on April 14, Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council said Friday. Itar-Tass quoted its spokesman Andrey Lysenko as saying that in the last 24 hours 10 service personnel were killed and 30 were wounded.
The German government claimed for the first time on Friday that it has received information on Russia’s “military intervention” in Ukraine. Its spokesman Steffen Seibert said, “We expect an explanation from Russia of the reports of these repeated violations of the Ukrainian borders, which add up to military intervention.” He also referred “to the presence of Russians and the use of Russian weapons … ‘growing evidence’” that has already existed for some time.
Russia has denied it is a participant in the conflict in eastern Ukraine. “Facts have never been presented to us,” said Russia’s Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, earlier Friday, responding to Western accusations.
The second shipment of Russian humanitarian aid for eastern Ukraine may be delivered by rail in the next 10 days, Interfax reported Friday, citing the Ukrainian authorities. “As the Russian side has proposed, railway transport may deliver [another humanitarian convoy] ,” Anatoly Makarenko, deputy head of the State Fiscal Service of Ukraine, told journalists. “The recipient should be the Red Cross, as has been agreed,” he said.
The Ukrainian Parliament will consider a law that may allow Ukraine join NATO. “Following the decision of Ukraine’s Security Council, the Cabinet of Ministers is introducing a law that cancels the non-aligned status of Ukraine and restores its NATO membership policy,” Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk said Friday.
The issue of Ukraine’s NATO membership reveals the division between the country’s regions. While the east of the country sees it as a threat to the country’ sovereignty, it is regarded as a chance for integration into the Euro-Atlantic area by the western part of the country.
The possibility of further sanctions on Russia will be discussed at a European Union summit on Saturday, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.
"We are getting reports of an increased presence of Russian soldiers and of new unrest and fresh advances of the separatists in areas that until now were very quiet," she said.
"We made it clear in March this year that if there were a further escalation, more sanctions would have to be discussed. So the issue will be on the agenda at the summit and we will have to ask ourselves how we will react,” Merkel added.
The central headquarters of the anti-Kiev forces has expressed its support for Putin's initiative to open a humanitarian corridor, provided that the troops disarm.
“We support the initiative of Russian President Vladimir Putin to create a humanitarian corridor to create a safe passage for the surrounded armed forces of Ukraine. We are ready to ensure the safety of the Ukrainian troops out of the encirclement under one condition – they have to go through the established corridor without weapons,” the anti-Kiev army press service said in a statement.
The prime minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic Aleksandr Zakharchenko elaborated, saying that “Ukrainian forces have to abandon heavy weaponry and ammunition, so they cannot be reused against us [anti-Kiev forces].”
The National Security Council of Ukraine has decided to resume conscription for military service in the autumn of this year, the deputy secretary of the NSDC Mikhail Koval announced.
"The Council has already decided this fall to renew the call for military service in the Armed Forces of Ukraine," he said at a press briefing on Thursday after a meeting of the National Security Council.
In this case, Koval said, new conscripts are not required to perform combat missions in the area of military operations in the east.
It makes no sense to comment in detail on the satellite imagery released by NATO as “proof” of Russia’s military involvement in Ukraine, Defense Ministry’s spokesman said, pointing out that even high NATO officials were hesitant to put their names on it.
“You know, it has become ridiculous… If earlier, someone would at least put their names on those images, be it Breedlove, Rasmussen, or even Lungescu, now, they are hesitant,” Konashenkov said as cited by RIA Novosti. “It makes no sense to seriously comment on this,” Russia’s Defense Ministry spokesman Major-General Igor Konashenkov said as he ridiculed the so-called NATO proof.
Ukraine has asked the United States to provide special NATO ally status outside the alliance, said National Security and Defense Council Deputy Secretary Mickhail Koval after an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council.
"Our country is counting on help from the United States, in particular, by providing a special status of the main ally of the United States of America outside of NATO,” Koval said, RIA Novosti reports.
28 August 2014
In the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkov, several hundred people held a rally against military action in Ukraine, during which there were clashes with the police.
According to local media, unknown men wearing Balaclavas threw firecrackers and smoke bombs at the Russia Consulate General building during the demonstrations. One of the protesters was detained by law enforcement officials and taken to the police department.
"According to our information, the meeting ended without incident," a diplomatic source, commenting on the question of possible damage to the building of a diplomatic mission told Itar-Tass. The press service of the Interior Ministry in Kharkiv region did not comment on the incident.
A statement calling for a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine was blocked at the UN Security Council under a completely futile pretext, Russia's envoy to the UN Vitaly Churkin said, after a heated debate with Kiev again accusing Russia of full-scale invasion.
“The Russian delegation's proposal on declaration of a ceasefire was blocked under a futile pretext,”Churkin said after the emergency session of the UNSC meeting, Itar-Tass quotes. “The Security Council as a result of destructive efforts of a number of its members was unable to play its role in resolving the Ukrainian crisis.”
President Putin has called on the self-defense militias in Ukraine to provide Kiev's military units blocked in the east of the country with a safe humanitarian corridor to cross into Russia.
“I call on the militia groups to open a humanitarian corridor for Ukrainian service members who have been surrounded, so as to avoid any needless loss of life, giving them the opportunity to leave the combat area unimpeded and reunite with their families, to return them to their mothers, wives and children, and to quickly provide medical assistance to those who were injured in the course of the military operation,” Putin said.
The National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) of Ukraine has decided that it was inappropriate to introduce martial law in the country because of the situation in the east Ukraine, NSDC's speaker Andrei Lysenko told Ria Novosti after an emergency meeting.
"This issue was raised at the meeting, but participants came to the conclusion that the imposition of martial law is not appropriate," he said.
President Barack Obama acknowledged during an impromptu press conference on Thursday afternoon that the United States is considering new sanctions to impose against Russia over the escalating crisis in Ukraine.
“As a result of the action Russia has already taken and the major sanctions we’ve imposed,” Obama said,“Russia is already more isolated than any time since the end of the cold war.”
“In our consultation with our European allies,” Obama said, “…my expectation is we will take additional steps, primary because we have not seen any meaningful action on the part of Russia to try and actually resolve this in a diplomatic fashion.”
Russia's permanent representative to the UN, Vitaly Churkin called on Washington to “curb their geopolitical ambitions” and stop interfering in the affairs of sovereign states. “Then not only Russia's neighbors, but also many other countries around the world will breathe a sigh of relief,” he said at the UN Security Council emergency meeting on Ukraine.
While Kiev continues to blame Russia for violating its sovereignty and escalating violence in the south east of the country, Churkin during the emergency session insisted that the current escalation is a“direct consequence of a wreckers policy of Kiev which is conducting a war against its own people.”
State Department spokesperson Jen Psaki said Thursday afternoon that the United States is considering new sanctions to impose against Russia as the crisis in Ukraine continues to escalate.
"We have additional tools and sanctions that we can certainly choose to put in place," Psaki told reporters, adding that the options will be weighed when US officials meet with NATO allies during an upcoming meeting.
Speaking of imposing sanctions in lieu of other routes, Psaki added that placing “escalatory” restrictions on Russia is the State Department’s preferred action, and that “military approach is not the best answer.”
The spokesperson’s remarks were made moments before representatives from the United Nations Security Council were scheduled to meet in New York City to discuss the Ukrainian crisis.
UN can't confirm claims that Russian troops have gone into Ukraine, Stephane Dujarric, UN secretary-general’s spokesman, told an Itar-Tass news agency.
A statement posted on Ukrainian president Peto Poroshenko’s official website on Thursday said he canceled his visit to Turkey “due to sharp aggravation of the situation in the Donetsk Region, in particular in Amvrosiyevka and Starobeshevo, as Russian troops were actually brought into Ukraine.”
Russia's permanent representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Andrey Kelin denied the allegations, saying that “there is no participation of Russian military” in eastern Ukraine.
NATO has released satellite imagery which it claims is evidence of Russian combat troops being inside Ukraine.
“Over the past two weeks we have noted a significant escalation in both the level and sophistication of Russia’s military interference in Ukraine,” Brigadier General Nico Tak, Director of the Comprehensive Crisis and Operations Management Centre at Allied Command Operations said in a statement published on the NATO website.
“The satellite images released today provide additional evidence that Russian combat soldiers, equipped with sophisticated heavy weaponry, are operating inside Ukraine’s sovereign territory,” Tak added. “We have also detected large quantities of advanced weapons, including air defense systems, artillery, tanks, and armored personnel carriers being transferred to separatist forces,” he said.
The image were provided by an independent organization called Digital Globe.
UK Prime Minister David Cameron has released a statement expressing his deep concern over the present situation in Ukraine.
"I’m extremely concerned by mounting evidence that Russian troops have made large-scale incursions into South Eastern Ukraine, completely disregarding the sovereignty of a neighbor," he said, adding that "we urge Russia to pursue a different path and to find a political solution to this crisis. If Russia does not, then she should be in no doubt that there will be further consequences."
Ukraine’s president, Petro Poroshenko, has ordered the country’s border guards to restore operations at checkpoints in the southeast of the country.
The border guards should agree joint border patrols with their Russian counterparts “to make it impossible for military vehicles and hardware to enter our territory,” Poroshenko said during a meeting of Ukraine’s National Security and Defense Council.
As for the situation in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, where the militias are advancing on Kiev’s forces, the president said that it’s “extremely complicated… but controllable, so that we don’t panic.”
Burnt out car in front of #market in #Donetsk. pic.twitter.com/3S6OuhyYb5
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 28, 2014
Greece has decided to temporarily relocate its general consulate in Ukraine from Mariupol to Dnepropetrovsk due to “the worsening of security in the city,” the Greek Foreign Ministry said.
The ministry also stressed that it remains “in constant communication with the Foreign Ministry of Ukraine in order to ensure the safety of the representatives of the Greek Diaspora living in the country,” the Itar-Tass news agency reports.
Mariupol is currently under the control of government troops, who are preparing to take on the advancing anti-Kiev forces.
The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting at 14:00 New York time (18:00 GMT) on Thursday over claims that Russian troops have “have been brought” into Ukraine.
Russia will be asked to explain why its soldiers are in Ukraine, said Mark Lyall Grant, Britain’s ambassador to the United Nations.
Grant said that he personally has no doubts that reports of over 1,000 Russian troops fighting on the side of the anti-Kiev forces in eastern Ukraine are true.
Several hundred people have gathered in front of the General Staff in the capital of Kiev, demanding the resignation of the country’s president Petro Poroshenko as well as all the leaders of the so-called ‘anti-terrorist’ operation in the country’s east.
They are relatives of Ukrainian soldiers fighting in the country’s eastern city of Ilovaisk. One of the banners reads “Poroshenko, are you playing with Devil?”
Earlier, there were reports that the troops came under siege in the city and the authorities didn’t send any help to them.
Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has canceled his trip to Turkey due to the crisis situation in his country’s east, reported the presidential press service.
"I have made a decision to cancel my working visit to the Republic of Turkey due to sharp aggravation of the situation in Donetsk region, particularly in Amvrosiivka and Starobeshevo, as Russian troops were brought into Ukraine," he said.
Ukraine is going to call for a meeting of the UN Security Council, said Poroshenko.
"The world must provide assessment of sharp aggravation of the situation in Ukraine," he added.
Poroshenko added that on Thursday there will be a meeting of Security and Defense Council to elaborate the plan for further action.
"The President must stay in Kyiv today," he said.
Ukrainian troops had to leave the city of Novoazovsk, Donetsk Region, eastern Ukraine, to save their lives, said the country’s Security and Defense Council on Twitter.
Now Kiev forces are reinforcing their defenses in the city of Mariupol, southeastern Ukraine.
Switzerland is calling an emergency meeting of the OSCE's permanent council on the situation in Ukraine. The meeting will take place in the Vienna headquarters at 11:00AM local time. Although no meetings take place during August usually, Roland Bless of the Swiss delegation told journalists this is the "second" special case this month alone where an acception has to be made.
1) .@OSCE Special Permanent Council meeting, called for by #Swiss Chair Amb. Thomas Greminger at 11am, Hofburg. Focus #Ukraine .@OSCE_SMM
— Swiss OSCE 2014 (@SwissOSCE2014) August 28, 2014
Kiev authorities and Western countries are repeatedly talking about Russian invasion to justify the mass defeats of the Ukrainian army [in the country’s east], says the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Donetsk People’s Republic Aleksandr Zakharchenko.
“We never concealed that among the self-defense force there are many volunteers from Russia. They are among us, people of Donbass [Region, eastern Ukraine] because we are blood brothers,” he added.
In the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkov, several hundred people held a rally against military action in Ukraine, during which there were clashes with the police.
According to local media, unknown men wearing Balaclavas threw firecrackers and smoke bombs at the Russia Consulate General building during the demonstrations. One of the protesters was detained by law enforcement officials and taken to the police department.
"According to our information, the meeting ended without incident," a diplomatic source, commenting on the question of possible damage to the building of a diplomatic mission told Itar-Tass. The press service of the Interior Ministry in Kharkiv region did not comment on the incident.
27 August 2014
During the Russian and Ukrainian presidents’ meeting, an understanding was reached about the necessity to continue the dialogue, the Kremlin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, stated.
“However, the location, the timing and the format of the dialogue will also be discussed,” Peskov added, Itar-Tass news agency reported.
“It’s too early to talk about it yet,” Peskov said.
A group of more than 60 Ukrainian military personnel have crossed into Russia's Rostov Region to ask for asylum, the spokesman for the FSB's border guard office in the Rostov Region, Nikolai Sinitsyn, told Itar-Tass news agency.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin has supported the agreement on the three-sided negotiations on the Ukraine-EU Association Agreement. The two leaders also agreed that the ongoing bloodshed should be stopped and the humanitarian situation in the east of Ukraine should be improved.
President Putin “stated Russia’s intent to continue the humanitarian aid deliveries to the cities of Lugansk and Donetsk regions,” the Kremlin’s press service said.
Western countries don’t want to notice how widespread violations of humans rights are by Kiev’s troops, Russian Foreign Ministry said.
Two Crimean journalists, Evgeniya Korolyova and Maksim Vasilenko, said that one of the reasons for their capture by the Right Sector radical group was photos they took of 'the march of prisoners' in Donetsk on Ukraine’s Independence Day.
“When we were stopped at the checkpoint, they first congratulated us on [Ukraine’s] Independence Day, but when they saw those photos they lost control,” said Vasilenko.
One more reason for their detention was the journalists’ accreditation from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
26 August 2014
The latest UN figures show that the number of killed and wounded in the armed conflict in Ukraine is steadily increasing, the Russia Foreign Ministry said.
“As of August 19, we’re talking about 2,249 people (including at least 23 children) and 6,033 others wounded (including at least 38 children),” the ministry said in a statement.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the number of internally displaced people in Ukraine has increased to 190,000 (from 156,000 on August 13), the statement said.
As for Ukrainian refugees fleeing to Russia, their numbers rose from 188,000 to 207,000 in the last two weeks, the ministry added.
Russian customs officials from the Veselo-Voznesensk checkpoint have been evacuated due to a shooting in Ukraine.
“Heavy shooting started near the Ukrainian checkpoint Novoazovsk. There was a threat that the ammunition would reach Russian territory. The customs officials have been evacuated to a safe place,” Ryan Fakurshin from the press service of Russian Southern Customs Department told ITAR-TASS.
Night time shelling by the Ukrainian military has reached the Petrovsky and Kievsky districts of Donetsk, resulting in three deaths, according to the city council.
Today ten self-defense troops have been killed and several dozen others injured.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 26, 2014
Presidents Putin and Poroshenko could be set to discuss the situation with the recent abduction of Russian news agency journalists in the south-east of Ukraine, RIA Novosti reports.
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko in a telephone conversation with Chancellor Angela Merkel discussed his decision to terminate the powers of the Ukrainian parliament, as well as the upcoming meeting of representatives of the EU Customs Union and Ukraine in Minsk, according to the website of the Ukrainian president.
"The two sides discussed separately the president's decision to terminate the powers of the Verkhovna Rada. Parties agreed that this is a step towards the expectations of Ukrainian civil society, as well as a way to strengthen democratic institutions in Ukraine"
25 August 2014
The Crimean Telegraph newspaper said that two of its journalists have gone missing in the warzone in Donetsk Region of Ukraine on August 24.
“Yesterday, in the area of the ‘anti-terrorist operation’ not far from the city of Donetsk reporter Evgenia Korolyova and photographer Maksim Vasilenko were removed from their bus by Right Sector [radical movement] representatives,” the paper said.
“Korolyova was allowed to make one phone call, but couldn’t speak freely as it was obvious that “people, who controlled her every word, were with her,” the Crimean Telegraph added.
“When asked if she felt a real threat to her life, Evgenia said ‘no’, but confirmed that they were detained not as ordinary Crimean citizens, but as journalists,” the newspaper said.
The distribution of humanitarian aid from Russia has started in the besieged city of Lugansk in southeastern Ukraine, with 12 issuing points opening in the city on Monday.
The minimum package handed out to residents includes rice, buckwheat and sugar, three canned meats, a packet of tea and 10 liters of water.
24 August 2014
The United Nations calls to increase the amount of humanitarian aid to the residents of eastern Ukraine due to the upcoming plunge in temperature, said Valerie Amos, UN Undersecretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs. “Most of the refugees are vulnerable even for the moment, and temporary shelters they live in are not meant for under zero temperatures. We have to provide people with support for them to be able to survive the winter,” she said in a statement after her 4-day-long visit to Ukraine.
The number of Ukrainian government forces killed during the “anti-terrorist” campaign in the country’s east has reached 722, the National Defense and Security Council said. This is a 150 troops jump from August 11, when the figure was at 568.
Donetsk self-defense troops have force-marched dozens of Ukrainian prisoners of war along the main street of the rebel-held town in east Ukraine.
People shouted “fascists” at the group, who walked with heads bowed, reports Reuters citing eyewitnesses. The captives were largely unshaven, disheveled and dressed either in combat fatigues or civilian clothes.
Supporters of the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Donetsk threw plastic bottles and eggs at the group, which comprised of about 50 captive soldiers, reports the Ukrainian Ostrov news website.
More photos of ruin and struggle in #Yasinovata. pic.twitter.com/QJb8xgXVDv
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 24, 2014
Kiev will spend 40 billion hryvnas (around $3 billion) on weapons and army modernization in 2015-2017, President Poroshenko promised, speaking at the military parade marking Ukraine’s Independence Day. He announced it will be a “modest beginning.”
Poroshenko also said that some of the military personnel engaged in the parade, as well as a portion of the new weaponry on display, will be sent straight to the military zone in the country’s east after the celebration.
Five artillery missiles have landed in a morgue in central Donetsk, an RIA Novosti correspondent on the ground reports, saying no mortuary staff were injured in the attack.
Multiple massive attacks reported this morning on suburbs and residential areas in #Donetsk.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 24, 2014
Lugansk self-defense forces have declared they’re launching an offensive, the RIA Novosti news agency reported, citing self-defense headquarters.
They are targeting the city of Severodonetsk in the northwest of the Lugansk region, which they were forced to abandon in July and Debaltsevo in the east of the Donetsk region.
According to the headquarters’ data, the militia also destroyed a Ukrainian reconnaissance and sabotage group, consisting of seven people and one infantry combat vehicle.
23 August 2014
Three people were killed and six others injured after a Kiev forces’ shell hit a church in the Donetsk Region town of Kirovskoye in the middle of a service, press service of Gorlovskaya diocese has said.
"The shelling destroyed completely the church of St. John of Kronstadt," the press service said as quoted by Itar-Tass. "The all-night vigil continued as the shell ruined the church's roof, and the ceiling fell on the praying people."
The priest, his wife and four parishioners were taken to hospital.
Shelling from the same assault also hit a hospital, killing two people.
The humanitarian situation in the city of Lugansk, which is under constant shelling by the Ukrainian army, remains critical. Over the last 24 hours 68 civilians have been injured, Lugansk city council reports on Saturday. Representatives of the International Red Cross inspecting the situation in the city have confirmed to the UN that the humanitarian situation in the city is grave.
Employees of the Russian Red Cross can’t come to Ukraine to help with humanitarian aid without approval from the Ukrainian Red Cross, RIA Novosti news agency reported, citing the head of Russia’s Red Cross, Raisa Lukutsova.
Lukutsova said she knows about the negotiations concerning the participation of the International Red Cross committee in the distribution of the aid, “but there is no result yet.”
“I’ve only recently spoken with the president of the Ukrainian Red Cross; they are discussing it, aren’t ready to give an answer. We [Russian Red Cross volunteers] can’t enter the country’s territory without the Ukrainian Red Cross’s consent,” Lukutsova said.
The Russian Foreign Ministry is ready to continue working with the Red Cross to bring humanitarian aid to eastern Ukraine, according to a foreign ministry statement, as quoted by the RIA Novosti news agency.
Three civilians have died in artillery shelling in Donetsk by Kiev forces, and the situation remains tense, according to a statement published on the city council’s website.
“As a result of morning artillery shelling in Kievsky district, two civilians have died –they were waiting at a bus stop. In Kirovsky district, one person was wounded – but he later died in the hospital,” the statement read.
Lugansk residents hope that Russia will provide more humanitarian aid in the future, first vice premier of the Lugansk People’s Republic Vasily Nikitin told Ria Novosti.
“We don’t have any food left, and we hope that Russia won’t leave us in this situation and these humanitarian convoys containing food will become commonplace. We hope for the help, and we need it,” Nikitin stated.
The humanitarian convoy came under fire on Friday while approaching the city of Lugansk, an unknown source told the Ria Novosti news agency.
“Arriving in Lugansk, the convoy was shelled by mortar launchers from the area occupied by the Kiev-controlled military,” the source stated.
According to the source, no one was injured, and the humanitarian aid was delivered safely to Lugansk.
The first batch of trucks has returned to Russia after delivering aid to Lugansk. 34 vehicles are currently back in Russia, with six units in total to arrive.
President Poroshenko has stated that Ukrainian will be the only state language in the country, as cited by Itar-Tass.
“No one will break Ukraine apart on the principle of language; the only state language in the country will be Ukrainian,” he said at a flag-raising ceremony in the center of Kiev.
He added that the Russian-speaking citizens “love Ukraine no less than those who speak Ukrainian.”
“We should appreciate the contribution of those who speak Russian,” Poroshenko said.
About 45 percent of the Ukrainian population use Russian at home, according to the latest data by the Kiev International Institute of Sociology. The 2001 census also indicated that 68 percent are “fluent in Russian.”
The Red Cross allegedly insisted on sending the humanitarian convoy via a dangerous route, through the village of Novostelovka, where Ukraine’s National Guard was stationed, according to an unknown source of the Ria Novosti news agency.
“There is fighting going on in Novosvetlovka, and the road to Lugansk remains closed. Despite this, the Red Cross insisted on the convoy going via that dangerous route,” the source told the agency.
The Red Cross wasn’t immediately available for comment.
The first trucks from the Russian humanitarian convoy have left Lugansk and Ukraine. They are currently at the Russian-Ukrainian border, the Itar-Tass news agency reported, citing its correspondent at the scene.
US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the Russian humanitarian convoy’s crossing the Ukrainian border a provocation, during a phone conversation, AP reported citing the White House.
The leaders stated that “a Russian convoy that entered Ukraine without approval is yet another provocation by Moscow that violates Ukraine’s sovereignty.”
Also, Obama and Merkel urged the removal of the convoy and that the terms previously agreed with the Ukrainian authorities and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) be accepted.
They also called on Moscow to withdraw troops from the Ukrainian border and to stop what they called the flow of military hardware and equipment into Ukraine.
Trucks with Russian humanitarian aid arrived at the border on August 14.
Around 200 trucks carrying Russian humanitarian aid have crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border at the Donetsk checkpoint on Friday evening, Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) observers reported.
The convoy was accompanied by about 30 other vehicles, including ambulances, fuel trucks and construction vehicle, of which six have returned.
Overall, the Russian humanitarian convoy is made up of 280 trucks, according to RIA Novosti.
22 August 2014
EU is shocked with the kidnapping and killing of Lithuania’s honorary consul Nikolay Zelenec in Lugansk, EU's foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said in a statement.
Ashton blamed illegal armed groups for the diplomat's death and called to bring the perpetrators to justice.
According to Ashton, the incident should become a wake-up call to stop the violence in eastern Ukraine and take all the necessary steps for de-escalation of the crisis.
Lithuania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Linas Linkevicius, reported on Zelenec’s murder on his Twitter account on Friday.
Russia’s UN envoy Vitaly Churkin described Friday’s UN Security Council meeting on Russian humanitarian convoy for eastern Ukraine as “the kingdom of crooked mirrors.”
“What happened at the UNSC meeting reminded me of the kingdom of crooked mirrors because some of the members were not interested in the fact that innocent people are dying in the east of Ukraine, they were not interested that there is a humanitarian catastrophe there, instead they were worried about the fact that Russia is providing humanitarian help to those who are being shot at,” Churkin said.
Churkin added that Russia is in contact with Ukrainian authorities and hopes that “there will be no problem with the humanitarian aid and its delivery.”
Churkin reminded all the members that Kiev itself agreed to allow the humanitarian aid through on August 12.
“As for the reproaches concerning respect of sovereignty, then, again, we received their formal consent, we have discussed this question with them, and if they decided to lie, it’s their problem. We want to help those in need,” said Churkin. “After some discussions, the situation regarding this topic has calmed down in the UNSC,” he said.
Ukrainian border officials are not in control of more than 100 kilometers (62 miles) of state border in eastern Ukraine, including the area around Izvarino, located in Lugansk region, Ukraine’s Deputy Head of the State Border Service of Ukraine, Pavel Shisholin, told the country’s Channel One.
Border guards patrolling near Izvarino left the area after 21 days of defense and blockade, Shisholin said, adding that 7 guards were injured, two of them critically.
Ukrainian army’s strikes hit and damaged residential buildings in Donetsk’s Petrovskiy district early on Saturday, killing at least one civilian, Interfax reported citing self-defense forces.
Kiev troops used rocket launcher Grad and mortars. Local market was set on fire during the attack.
Earlier, Ukraine's National Security Council spokesman, Andrey Lysenko, said Ukrainian army is carrying out assaults in Donetsk, Shakhtersk, Torez, and Zugres.
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it is ready to help the people of Lugansk. “Our team in Lugansk says people need water, food, medicine,” ICRC wrote on its Twitter account. “We are ready to help Ukraine. We encourage both Ukraine and Russia to respect the neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian action of the ICRC.”
Our team in #Lugansk says people need water, food, medicine. We are ready to help. #Ukraine
— ICRC (@ICRC) August 22, 2014
We encourage both #Ukraine and #Russia to respect the neutral, impartial and independent humanitarian action of the ICRC.
— ICRC (@ICRC) August 22, 2014
Earlier on Friday, the ICRC said it could not comply to the initial plan of escorting Russian convoy carrying humanitarian aid due to security concerns.
Russian aid convoy could arrive to empty streets here as people in #Lugansk have fled for cover from shelling. pic.twitter.com/f6t1AX5Ugi
— GrahamWPhillips (@GrahamWP_UK) August 22, 2014
Russian journalists are calling on the Russian and Ukrainian authorities, as well as international organizations, to do everything possible to save Russian photo journalist, Andrey Stenin, who is missing in Ukraine.
“We are employees of various media outlets. We are all united by one thing: the concern over the fate of our colleague…” the statement published on the Russian Journalists’ Union website.
“Journalists’ work in war zones is always connected with danger. The presence of reporters can be a disadvantage for one side or the other, and sometimes both of them. Any correspondent from any country can end up in trouble,” the statement added.
The professional community shouldn’t keep silent in such cases, the statement says.
“We are urging everyone: the Andrey Stenin’s employers, the ministries and departments in Russia and Ukraine, the presidents of both countries, international civil rights organizations, journalists’ associations – everyone to put all possible efforts into finding and rescuing our colleague.”
Stenin hasn’t contacted anyone since August 5.
The Ukrainian army shells Lugansk every day. The city continues to withstand Kiev’s attacks in dire conditions without electricity, fresh water and phone networks, a situation that has persisted for the last three weeks, said the city council’s press service. “There’ve been no food, drugs and fuel supplies to the city for a long time. Citizens aren’t receiving salaries, pensions and welfare,” the press service added. People queue to buy the most necessary products. Garbage removal stopped weeks ago and the warm summer temperatures have put the city on the brink of an outbreak of infectious diseases. On Friday artillery strikes considerably damaged the infrastructure of the city’s football arena, Avangard. The city of Lugansk is waiting for a convoy with Russian humanitarian help, as a last resort to save its citizens.
About 60 KAMAZ trucks (approximately 20 percent of the total) from the Russian humanitarian convoy have crossed the Ukrainian border. The convoy has been greeted in Ukraine by several locals holding Russian flags, St.George’s ribbons and posters, saying: “Thank you!”, “Mother-Russia will not fail us!”, “Cannot kill us or force on our knees!”
Russian aid convoy crosses Ukraine border and Russia warns against any attempts to disrupt it http://t.co/Q34hhmIihspic.twitter.com/c7bm8jp5w4
— ITV News (@itvnews) August 22, 2014
21 August 2014
The humanitarian situation in Lugansk is “very grave,” said the head of the Europe and Central Asia Department of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). Loran Korba, commenting on Wednesday’s visit by ICRC workers to the eastern Ukrainian town, said that, “People are afraid to leave their homes because of the shelling. <…> As there is no internet and telephone service, a lot of people lost contact with their relatives.” He also called on conflicting parties to “have mercy on civilians and civilian property.”
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is handling the situation with missing Russian photojournalist Andrey Stenin, a representative of the organization confirmed. The head of the ICRC’s Europe and Central Asia Department, Loran Korba, added, “We hope to get some positive information about him as soon as possible.” Stenin went missing on August 5 while working in eastern Ukraine.
The first four aid trucks from the Russian humanitarian convoy are going through an inspection and customs formalities on the Ukrainian border, Kiev officials told Interfax-Ukraine news agency.
The trucks – which are carrying food and medical supplies – were turned back on Wednesday, after Ukrainian officials said that they had not received the correct documentation from the Russian side.
President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, has signed a law enabling the country’s law enforcement to detain citizens in the zone of the so-called anti-terrorist operation (ATO) without a court ruling for up to 30 days, the RIA news agency reports. Just like the previously allowed detention limit of 72 hours behind bars, the new one-month detention should be agreed with prosecutors. “This will improve the effectiveness and efficiency of law enforcement actions during the ATO and will contribute to the execution of their tasks and neutralization of terrorists," said the press-service.
The battle for the small town of Ilovaisk, some 35 kilometers from Donetsk, resulted in 16 deaths and at least 50 wounded among Ukrainian troops and members of the National Guard, Anton Geraschenko, counselor of the Minister of Interior, acknowledged, as quoted by Itar-Tass. Five soldiers have died and 21 have been wounded over the last 24 hours, Andrey Lysenko, spokesman from the national Security Council, informed journalists.
The self-defense militia of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic claim that all attacks on Ilovaisk have been repelled and several units of the Ukrainian army have been surrounded on the outskirts of the city.
Trucks with Russian humanitarian aid have started their journey from a camp in Russia’s Rostov Region towards the border with Ukraine, ITAR-TASS reports. White trucks in groups of 10-15, followed by cars with Red Cross flags, are heading towards a checkpoint 50km away, and their final destination is southeastern Ukraine. Russia’s Emergencies Ministry said, “Only one driver is allowed to be in a truck’s cab, no stops are permitted on the way, and there is medical support provided should there be a need for first aid treatment.”
The convoy with nearly 2,000 tons of food supplies, water, baby food and medical goods was turned back by Ukrainian customs officials on August 14. As the press secretary of the International Committee of the Red Cross put it, “The decisions made by the Ukrainian party have led to the delay in this process.”
Hoping trucks will start moving today; customs check will take several hours #humanitarianconvoy
— Irina Galushko (@IrinaGalushkoRT) August 21, 2014
Four prisoners have died after the Ukrainian army shelled Penal Colony #32 in the city of Makeevka in the Donetsk region. An artillery strike came around noon on August 20, with two shells exploding in the grounds of the penitentiary. One shell hit a barracks, killing two prisoners instantly and injuring eight more. Two wounded convicts later died in the colony’s hospital on Thursday morning.
The first 16 trucks containing Russian aid for Ukraine are still waiting for the greenlight to cross the border, despite all paperwork from the Russian side and the International Red Cross Russian being presented on Wednesday. The trucks remain at Ukraine’s Izvarino border checkpoint. Yesterday, the convoy was expected to start heading for Lugansk at 8 am.
Destroyed #Ukraine regime self propelled artillery near #Stepanovkapic.twitter.com/1smE5Sf5OK via @NovorossiaNews
— Steiner (@Steiner1776) August 20, 2014
The number people displaced as a result of Kiev’s military operation in eastern Ukraine has surged to 190,000 in the last few days, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Ariane Rammeri has said.
“We recognize that the number of displaced could be higher in light of the non-existent central system of registration,” Rammeri added.
UNHCR cites Russian government when estimating that as many as 773,000 Ukrainian refugees entered Russia since January.
New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) urged Ukraine to reverse its ban on 14 Russian TV channels.
“We are concerned by Ukraine's ban on Russian television channels and call on authorities to reverse it immediately,” CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said. “The Ukrainian public deserves access to a range of information that reflects all sides and views.”
20 August 2014
President Barack Obama acknowledged during an impromptu press conference on Thursday afternoon that the United States is considering new sanctions to impose against Russia over the escalating crisis in Ukraine.
“As a result of the action Russia has already taken and the major sanctions we’ve imposed,” Obama said.“Russia is already more isolated than any time since the end of the cold war.”
“In our consultation with our European allies,” Obama said, “…my expectation is we will take additional steps, primary because we have not seen any meaningful action on the part of Russia to try and actually resolve this in a diplomatic fashion.”
#Ukraine not ready to start processing #humanitarianconvoy b/c paperwork not ready
— Irina Galushko (@IrinaGalushkoRT) August 20, 2014
The first four Russian trucks from the humanitarian convoy failed to pass the Ukrainian border, after customs officials refused to inspect them, forcing them to turn back.
“The examination of the truck freight cannot begin before Thursday, as we have not received the requisite documents from the Russian side,” said Ukraine’s National Security Council spokesman Andrey Lysenko.
DNR forces say they have re-taken the strategic transport hub of Ilovaysk in Donetsk region, after intense fire-fights with government forces. According to a press release from the rebels the Donbass and Azov government units suffered heavy losses in the battle.
Earlier the government said that it had taken control of the area, and repelled all militant attacks.
The observers from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, working at the Donetsk and Gukovo checkpoints, didn’t record the transition of any Russian military vehicles to Ukrainian territory on August 13-19, the OSCE Mission said in weekly reports.
The Ukrainian side has not turned up for the customs inspection of the Russian aid to residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions, a source at at the Donetsk checkpoint told the RIA-Novosti news agency. Consequently, customs operations are on hold.
"When the inspection of the humanitarian cargo was due to begin, the Ukrainian representatives didn’t arrive. The crossing of the border by the 16 trucks is delayed,” the source said.
Anti-government forces shot down a Ukrainian SU-25 single-seat fighter jet in the Lugansk region of eastern Ukraine on Wednesday, Kiev said. It remains unclear whether the pilot was able to eject or had been killed in the crash, military spokesman Andrey Lysenko told Ukrainian channel 112.ua.
Eastern Ukraine has sustained another day of heavy shelling. At least 5 people were killed in an army assault on a village near Donetsk, while the city itself was also hit. Inside the city, people are struggling with a dire humanitarian situation, as Paula Slier has more.
The first 16 trucks with Russian humanitarian aid to the residents of the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions of Ukraine are ready to go through customs inspections at the Donetsk checkpoint on the Russia-Ukraine border.
The convoy is expected to move out to its destination in Ukraine during the night, at around 3:00-4:00 MSK.
Running water is back on in at least some parts of #Donetsk
— Antoine E.R.Delaunay (@aerdelaunay) August 20, 2014
The Makeevka village in the Donetsk Region has been hit by heavy shelling, with a factory being set on fire, according to Itar-Tass, who spoke to witnesses. The workers have been evacuated.
A tire iron fabric has also been set on fire, causing a thick plume of black smoke to rise up above the city of Donetsk.
34 people have lost their lives in Donetsk in one day, as Ilovaysk of the Donetsk Region falls into the hands of the Ukrainian military.
29 others have been injured, local health authorities reported on Wednesday. The overall death toll in the region stands at 951, according to UNIAN.
#Explosions heard in densely populated suburbs of #Donetsk.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 20, 2014
Expenses from the military conflict in eastern Ukraine will exceed $600 million, according to preliminary estimates by the country’s Ministry of Finance. Ukraine’s Minister of Finance Oleksandr Shlapak told journalists on Wednesday that it is impossible to estimate the “real losses.”“It may be done only after the liberation of the territories, when relevant groups of experts get there.” He also added that it was obvious for the figures to be much higher than 8 billion hryvnia ($615 million) he named.
Allegations in the media that Russia has been secretly supplying the eastern-Ukrainian resistance with weapons have no basis in fact, Andrey Lysenko of the Ukrainian National Intelligence Council, RIA Novosti reports.
"This information is frankly suspicious," he said. "There is no intelligence to back this up... many of the details have begun to appear only this morning", Lysenko said of the allegations given to the Ukrainian media by unnamed sources.
Ukraine’s Security Council has no information on the missing Russian journalist, said its official representative on Wednesday. Andrey Lysenko denied knowing anything about the fate of ‘Rossiya Segodnya’ news agency photographer Andrey Stenin, who went missing on August 5 while on duty in eastern Ukraine. Although previously the counselor of the Ministry of Interior said that Stenin was arrested by the Ukrainian security service, suspected of “complicity with terrorists,” later on he said he had been “misunderstood.”
Donetsk has faced another day of heavy shelling, as RT's Paula Slier reports from the besieged city. Once prospering, it has turned into a place on the verge of extinction with its empty streets and people, either hiding in shelters or fleeing their native city. But some locals have decided to stay despite the humanitarian catastrophe in the city with no water and electricity: “I was born here, I was raised here, on these streets - why should I leave this city just because someone decided to bomb it.”
Since March 13, a total of 951 civilians have been killed in the Donetsk region, according to a tally published by the city council’s healthcare department.
Over the past 24 hours, 34 people have been killed in Donetsk and 29 others injured due to the hostilities between the Ukrainian troops and the militia forces, the council added.
Local population concerned of another #Chernobyl-like disaster due to fires and reports of rocket launchers used at the Makeyev facility.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) August 20, 2014
An advance mission of the International Committee for the Red Cross has been dispatched to Ukraine to monitor the planned route for the Russian humanitarian aid convoy, the Russian Foreign Ministry reported Wednesday.
The announcement comes after a meeting in Moscow between the Red Cross and Russian diplomats to discuss the aid mission.
19 August 2014
Ukraine has banned 14 Russian television channels including Russia Today and Life News from broadcasting on cable networks in Ukraine, accusing them of spreading war propaganda, Ukrainian interior ministry aide Anton Gerashenko said on Tuesday.
The fourteen channels are banned temporarily for "broadcasting propaganda of war and violence," Gerashenko said in a Facebook post. (Reuters)
Artillery fire started early in the morning in the town of Makeevka, located to the east of Donetsk. Reuters reported residents as saying it was the first time there had been shelling in the area. The town’s railway station came under heavy fire, and most of the local residents have gone down to basements or shelters.
The bodies of 15 refugees killed in the shelling of a convoy to the southeast of Lugansk on Monday morning have been identified, Ukraine’s Security Council said Tuesday, blaming militiamen for their deaths. The self-defense forces in Eastern Ukraine denied the accusations, saying that they have neither force nor the means to conduct such an attack. The prime minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Alexandr Zakharchenko, called the Kiev’s statement “a pure and simple fake”.
Civilians were killed and injured as a result of shelling which nearly destroyed the central part of Lugansk on Tuesday night. No numbers are given in a message on the city council’s website, which cites reports of the city’s residents. It calls the situation in the town critical, as only the most essential products are on sale, and people face waiting in long lines to get bread. There has been no water or electricity, and mobile and landline phone lines have been down for 17 days. High temperatures may trigger infections in the city, due to a lack of fresh water and piles of garbage.
Ukrainian troops have shelled the center of Lugansk, apparently aiming for the city council building, rebels reported. They also denied a report of gunfights in the city center which was voiced on Tuesday morning by a Ukrainian police official.
Washington has recognized the need for Russian humanitarian aid in eastern Ukraine, according to comments by the US State Department spokesperson Marie Harf.
“We agree that the people of that region are in need of aid,” Harf said during a briefing on Monday, adding that US wants the contents of the aid convoys checked.
“We want to make sure this is actually aid, though. We understand there is an agreement that the aid will be inspected by Ukrainian border guards and customs officials before being transferred in batches to representatives of the ICRC [International Committee of the Red Cross].”
18 August 2014
The US State Department condemned the alleged shelling of a convoy in eastern Ukraine on Monday that killed dozens of people, but said it could not confirm who was responsible for the attack.
"We strongly condemn the shelling and rocketing of a convoy that was bearing internally displaced persons in Lugansk and express our condolences to the families of the victims," State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf told a news briefing. "Sadly, they were trying to get away from the fighting and instead became victims of it."
The Ukrainian government accused anti-Kiev rebels of targeting the convoy, which it said was bearing white flags. The rebels denied responsibility.
The self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk has introduced the death penalty for the most grievous crimes, the republic’s press service said.
The regulations for military courts and the criminal code have been approved during the first meeting of the Presidium of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Donetsk.
The newly-applied two-level court system will “greatly facilitate the fight against looting and banditry,” the press service said.
However, Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandr Karaman said that the republic would take “the path of humanization of its the criminal code” after the war is over.
The representatives of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have delivered humanitarian aid to needy people in southeastern Ukraine, Andrey Lysenko, the spokesman for country’s National Security and Defense Council, said.
“The International Committee of the Red Cross has reported that humanitarian aid has already been delivered to 10 cities in the Donbass,” Lysenko said, without making clear if it was the Russian humanitarian cargo that he was talking about.
The People’s Republic of Donetsk has denied an allegation by Kiev that the self-defense forces have opened fire at a column of refugees in eastern Ukraine, leading to numerous casualties.
“The reported assault on the column of refugees is disinformation. None of the refugee columns were fired at by the forces of the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk,” said Aleksandr Zaharchenko, prime minister of the People’s Republic of Donetsk.
Dozens of people, including women and children, were reportedly killed on Monday when a refugee convoy of buses was hit by rocket fire near the eastern city of Lugansk, a Ukrainian military spokesman said.
Ukraine has accused rebels of targeting the convoy, but the anti-Kiev forces deny responsibility.
"The rebels were expecting the convoy and destroyed it entirely. We haven't been able to count the number of victims ... dozens (were killed)," spokesman Andrey Lysenko said in a briefing to journalists. (Reuters)
Kiev claims that the militia forces have attacked a refugee convoy in the Lugansk Region.
The column was transporting people from the towns of Khryaschevatoye and Novosventlovka on Monday morning when it was hit by intensive mortar and rocket artillery fire, military spokesman Anatoly Proshin told the media. He added that the Ukrainian military responded with artillery fire of their own.
Militia sources would not immediately comment on the information. The region has witnessed fierce fighting in the past several days.
The EU and NATO will not be able to provide military aid to Ukraine, Finnish Prime Minister Alexander Stubb told Yle television.
“Of course it’s not possible. Not from NATO because NATO only provides military assistance to its members, and that’s well known. And the EU doesn’t have the capacity to provide this kind of support,” he believes.
Stubb was commenting on a request voiced Sunday by Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin, who said Kiev would welcome military aid from NATO and the EU in an interview.
Fighting in Ukraine close to the Russian border caused a wildfire, which threatened the Russian border checkpoint at Voloshino, the Russian Customs Service told ITAR-TASS. The fire almost ran out of control before firefighters could intervene, due to hot windy weather in the area.
17 August 2014
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier warned the Ukrainian conflict could soon escalate into open warfare between Ukrainian and Russian forces in Berlin, Sunday.
He emphasised this must be avoided at all costs and underlined the importance of the central government and anti-Kiev forces reaching a credible ceasefire, pointing out that previous agreements have been violated.
Steinmeier met with his Russian, German, French and Ukrainian counterparts in the hope of developing a new "road map" on achieving peace and bringing stability to the country.
Russian, Ukrainian, German, French FMs start meeting in Berlin http://t.co/SRXyw6rsoF@RusBotschaftpic.twitter.com/P9BMrdaorD
— MFA Russia (@mfa_russia) August 17, 2014
The Right Sector ultranationalist group will continue fighting against self-defense militia in southeastern Ukraine because Kiev authorities have met some of the demands of the organization, announced its leader Dmitro Yarosh. “Our brothers-in-arms have been freed,” said the Right Sector boss, expressing a hope that the high-ranking law enforcement officials who acted against the Right Sector would be eventually dismissed.
“This is a victory, though a small one,” Yarosh said, stressing that the Right Sector will stay vigilant “to protect its fighters from police outrage.”
The Kiev government has made a decision to eliminate the leader of the Right Sector group, Dmitro Yarosh, Russian military expert Igor Korotchenko told Zvezda TV channel, citing his sources in special services. On Sunday, Yarosh threatened that Right Sector fighters would march on Kiev (https://www.rt.com/news/180876-nationalists-threaten-kiev-raid/) if the authorities don’t free the arrested members of the group and stop investigations against them. Following the ultimatum, the cabinet held an urgent meeting, where Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov ordered the earliest possible elimination of the ultranationalist leader, claimed Korotchenko.
“Nobody is going to fulfill the ultimatum,” Korotchenko said. “(President) Poroshenko has held a closed meeting with his ministers. We also have information that Avakov ordered the formation of a special group to eliminate Yarosh, as a person posing a threat to the Ukrainian president and national sovereignty,” the expert said.
Seventeen Ukrainian soldiers who fled the fighting and crossed the Russian border unarmed into the southern Rostov region on Saturday returned to their country on Sunday morning, Itar-Tass reported. A Russian Ural armored military truck brought them to the border area of the Matveyev-Kurgan District, where a bus from Ukraine was waiting for them. "A bus took them into Ukrainian territory," said Nikolay Sinitsyn, a spokesman for the regional border department of Russia’s Federal Security Service.
Incidents with Ukrainian soldiers escaping the fierce fighting with self-defense militias in southeast Ukraine have taken place before. In one such incident, on August 4, 438 Ukrainian servicemen asked Russian border guards to allow them to cross the border into Russia. All of them were later returned to Ukraine.
Unknown malefactors have damaged the stone cross on the grave of Ukrainian nationalist Stepan Bandera in Munich’s Waldfriedhof cemetery, RIA Novosti reports. Police said that an initial report that the tomb had been blown up was not true. A police representative said the cross over the grave had been nearly knocked over completely. Police are investigating the incident.
Stepan Bandera was the head of the Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN), which collaborated with Nazi Germany during WWII and was involved in the ethnic cleansing of Poles, Jews and Russians. Bandera’s portrait has been used extensively by some Ukrainian nationalists in the current conflict in Ukraine, including on some demonstrations in Kiev.
The self-defense militia in the city of Krasnodon in the Lugansk region has shot down Ukrainian Su-25 strike aircraft, Itar-Tass reported, quoting the press center of the Lugansk People’s Republic.
“The pilot has ejected and is being searched for right now. There will be a video report of the downed airplanes’ posted on the web soon,” the press center said in a statement.
Earlier Sunday a spokesman for the Ukrainian military campaign, Leonid Matyukhin, told Channel 5 television that the militias in the Lugansk region had shot down a Ukrainian Mig-29 fighter jet.
The total losses of the Ukrainian Air Force over the months of the conflict, including those suffered today, are at least 54 aircraft.
Malaysia is looking for a way to prosecute whoever is responsible for the shooting down of flight MH17, the country’s top officials said.
“We will not sit quietly, and we will seek justice for those on MH17," Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told journalists after the opening of the annual congress of his political party, the United Malays National Organisation (UMNO).
"It doesn't matter which court we have to go, be it in Malaysia, Ukraine or at the International Court of Justice," The Straits Times newspaper quoted him as saying.
There were 43 Malaysian nationals among the 298 people who died on board MH17, when the plane was shot down over the Donetsk region in Eastern Ukraine on July 17.
Lugansk has come under heavy shelling overnight, with widespread damage and fires reported, the city council said in a statement on its website.
“The residents of Lugansk say the city has come under fire overnight, especially its eastern part. Due to the missiles hitting, there is damage to the buildings, and fires,” the statement says.
The situation remains critical in the city. Essential food is sold on the streets, while the city is without running water, electricity and communications. No supplies of medicines, food or fuel are being delivered. Salaries and pensions aren’t being paid.
Russian and Ukrainian officials have agreed to proceed with the inspection of the first group of 16 Russian trucks of the humanitarian convoy for eastern Ukraine, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said.
The ICRC will be supervising the delivery of the aid and will go ahead after it receives security guarantees from the warring sides in Ukraine.
Kiev’s troops have captured a police station in Lugansk’s Bolshaya Vergunka neighborhood in the northeast of the militia-held city, a Ukrainian military spokesman told the media. The troops raised a Ukrainian flag at the station’s entrance, according to local media reports.
@LUGANSK_TODAY Для неместных - это Вергунка, отметил на карте для ясности pic.twitter.com/gSybq4uZe7
— Lugansk News Today (@LUGANSK_TODAY) August 16, 2014
Ten civilians have been killed and eight wounded over the last 24 hours in Donetsk in the east of Ukraine due to the heavy fighting, the Donetsk city council’s press service reported.
“Just in one day, because of the military action, 10 people have died in Donetsk and eight have been wounded with varying severity. As of 9:30 am local time (06:30 GMT), the situation in the city remains tense. The residents say in all the city districts artillery fire is heard,” the statement read.
The militias in the Lugansk region have shot down a Ukrainian Mig-29 fighter overnight, a spokesman for the Ukrainian military campaign, Leonid Matyukhin, told Channel 5 television.
He said the plane was shot down after it attacked a group of “armed extremists.” The pilot ejected and was successfully recovered, he said.
Sixteen trucks of the Russian humanitarian aid convoy are moving closer to the Russian-Ukrainian border, according to reports from Kamensk-Shakhtinsk in Russia’s Rostov region, where the convoy is waiting for Kiev to allow the aid through.
The trucks are not expected to cross into Ukraine on Sunday, the organizers of the aid mission said.
The ultranationalist movement Right Sector has threatened a raid of its armed troops on Kiev unless the police releases all its members and closes all criminal investigations against them. The movement has also called on Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to fire top police officials involved in the prosecutions.
In a statement published on its website, Right Sector accused Deputy Interior Minister General Vladimir Yevdokimov of being the head of “a criminal police group of separatist stooges and a Moscow puppet.”
“Unless our demands are met within 48 hours, we will be forced to call off all our units on the front line, start a general mobilization of reserve battalions and launch a march on Kiev to enact a ‘swift reform’ of the Interior Ministry. The columns of the Right Sector will march in full gear,” the statement said.
The movement called on other volunteer paramilitary groups supporting the government’s military campaign in the east of Ukraine to support their demands and oust “the helpers of the terrorists in police uniforms from the Ukrainian land.”
The shelling of Donetsk by Ukrainian artillery killed at least four civilians, theCity Council of Donetsk reported.
"Unfortunately, there were casualties among the civilian population," the statement said. "Two people were killed during the shelling of the residential areas, while at least two civilians were killed on the bridge ... they are employees of the Donetsk Metallurgical Plant (DMZ).”
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin asked NATO and the EU for military support against anti-Kiev forces in eastern Ukraine.
"We need military aid because if we got such aid, it would be easier for our troops on the ground to act,” Klimkin told German radio station Deutschlandfunk.
16 August 2014
Ukraine Minister of Social Policy Lyudmila Denisova has signed an order officially recognizing the Russian convoy stuck at the border as humanitarian aid cargo of the International Committee of the Red Cross.
"In accordance with Articles 4 and 5 of the Law of Ukraine 'On Humanitarian Aid' considering the initiative of the President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko on receiving humanitarian aid within the framework of international humanitarian missions under the auspices of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to recognize the cargo as humanitarian aid,” the document reads.
Heavy fighting is continuing between Kiev and self-defense forces in the town of Yasinovataya, just north of Donetsk., RIA Novosti reports. Both sides are using heavy artillery and grenade launchers. Railway traffic has stopped.
The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) says it cannot confirm reports about the alleged crossing of Russian military column into Ukraine.
The OSCE’s monitoring mission in Ukraine “has been trying to verify reports on the crossing into Ukrainian territory of a number of military convoys from the Russian Federation, but has, thus far, not been able to establish the facts,” it said in a statement.
US Vice President Joe Biden agreed in a phone conversation with Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko that Russia's military activities in eastern Ukraine were inconsistent with its stated desire to improve the humanitarian situation there, the White House said, as cited by Reuters.
“The two leaders agreed that Russia's sending military columns across the border into Ukraine and its continued provision of advanced weapons to the separatists was inconsistent with any desire to improve the humanitarian situation in eastern Ukraine,” it reads.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has said efforts should be made to prevent a humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and, also avoid the acceleration of confrontations, Xinhua news agency reports.
All parties should work towards a political solution and “negotiate a program that could take into consideration the interests of all parties in a balanced manner at an early date,” Xi said during a meeting with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province.
— Maria Finoshina (@MFinoshina_RT) August 16, 2014
1/2 The head of @icrc delegation in Moscow joined our team in Rostov region in the vicinity of #Russia-led convoy.
— Anastasia Isyuk (@AIsyukICRC) August 16, 2014
2/2 He will encourage officials from #Ukraine and #Russia to work on an agreement with regard to border transfer, customs procedures.
— Anastasia Isyuk (@AIsyukICRC) August 16, 2014
Ukraine is refusing to acknowledge that the cargo delivered by the Russian convoy is humanitarian aid, the ICRC’s spokesperson, Galina Balzamova, told reporters, according to Itar-Tass. For now, the convoy remains stuck near the Ukrainian border.
France’s President Francois Hollande has urged the Kiev government to “exercise restraint” during its military operation against the militias in east Ukraine, the Elysée Palace reports.
Hollande and European Commission chief Jose Manuel Barroso agreed during their phone conversation that it is necessary to create conditions for the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians in conflict-torn Ukrainian regions and for the resumption of a political dialogue.
Kiev is trying to review the agreements on Russian humanitarian aid to the eastern regions of Ukraine, Russia’s Foreign Ministry stated.
“We categorically deny the ill-meaning manipulation of facts that has been recently done by representatives of some Ukraine’s government bodies. In particular, according to media reports, the representatives of the Ukraine’s Security Council state that the Russian side refused to deliver the humanitarian aid via the border posts controlled by Ukraine. Wild guesses circulate that we allegedly didn’t provide the information on the contents of the humanitarian aid. Both allegations are contrary to the facts,” the Foreign Ministry’s statement said.
The International Committee of the Red Cross is ready to take the Russian humanitarian aid column under its jurisdiction, should Russia and Ukraine agree on the matter, official representative of the ICRC Galina Balzamova told journalists.
“We need an agreement between the two sides – the Russian and the Ukrainian – to do that. Currently, as we know, there is no such agreement,” she said.
Dozens of protesters gathered at Saint-Michel place in Paris on Friday to express their solidarity with Donbass residents, and to denounce Kiev's ongoing military offensive in the region, Ruptly reports.
Protesters waved the Russian flag and held signs reading "Stop genocide in Ukraine" and "Genocide in progress, silence. Gaza, Donbass, same fight."
Today's protest comes amid efforts by Russia to deliver humanitarian aid to east Ukraine, under the auspices of the ICRC. A convoy of 280 trucks carrying medical supplies, food, power generators and sleeping bags among other supplies, left Alabino on Tuesday, August 12 for east Ukraine but is still awaiting approval from Kiev before crossing into Ukraine.
Lugansk has been in a critical situation for two weeks, with no electricity, water or communications, the city council said.
Intensive shelling has taken place overnight, with several fires started, including at a local supermarket, residents said.
Only essential food is on sale.
Medical supplies and fuel aren’t being delivered to the city.
Banks are closed, and pensions and salaries are not being paid.
Ukrainian prosecutors have launched over 480 cases into the defection of military personnel since the start of Kiev’s military operation in the east of the country, said Pavel Bogutsky, the Southern Region prosecutor in charge of military cases, Interfax news agency reported.
“The investigation into 145 criminal offences has been completed, and the indictments have been sent to court,” he said during a meeting of top military personnel on Friday. “Over half of these indictments concern people who deserted, refused to carry out their military duties and disobeyed orders.”
Over 30 people have received actual sentences so far, he said. Seven hundred military personnel were cleared of any wrongdoing, he added.
Watch RT's Maria Finoshina's report from the Russian-Ukrainian border, where the humanitarian convoy is now stationed.
Non-stop artillery strikes hit Donetsk overnight, local residents said, Interfax news agency reported.
Some of the missiles hit residential buildings, but the mayor’s office said it doesn’t have any information on casualties.
The situation remains tense in the city.
A nationwide search is now on in Ukraine for Russian photojournalist Andrey Stenin who has been missing since August 5th, adviser to the Ministry of Internal Affairs Anton Gerashchenko told “112" TV channel, hoping that the journalist was "captured" by the anti-Kiev forces.
"Andrey Stenin was placed on the missing list, because there is an appeal by relevant authorities, where he worked," said Gerashchenko, while repeatedly mistakenly calling him Senchin, and expressing hope that he is a prisoner of the militia, and that “one day he'll be found.”
Last week Gerashchenko in an interview to the Latvian radio Baltkom, said that the Ukrainian security services arrested the photojournalist who is suspected of "aiding and abetting terrorists." Gerashchenko later stated that he was "misunderstood", adding that he just "assumed" that Stenin was detained, but never had accurate information on this matter.
Anti-Kiev forces have announced they captured an enemy reconnaissance unit near Lugansk, tasked with attacking the Russian humanitarian convoy.
According to anti-Kiev forces, tree men were detained on Chevrolet Niva, in the trunk of which militia found “three grenade launchers and eight cartridges for them, seven anti-tank mines, small arms and a metal box for storage of ammunition." The weapons were hidden in pasta bags, the headquarters of self-defense forces told Itar-Tass.
At the same time saboteurs were reportedly ordered not to destroy the convoy but only get the column to turn back to the Russian border and not deliver food to the struggling residents.
Canada has sent a final batch of military equipment to Ukraine, the government there announced.
The third shipment provides “non-kinetic military equipment to Ukraine to assist in their efforts to secure and protect their eastern border,” the statement read
Overall Canada’s contribution of up to $5 million includes “a range of targeted protection, medical and logistical equipment, such as helmets, ballistic eyewear, protective vests, first aid kits, tents and sleeping bags.”
15 August 2014
Washington can't confirm that Kiev troops destroyed an alleged Russian convoy inside Ukraine, however it warned Russia against illegal intervention in Ukraine.
"Even as we work to gather information, we reiterate our concern about repeated Russian and Russian-supported incursions into Ukraine," White House spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden said in a statement.
"Russia has no right to send vehicles, persons, or cargo of any kind into Ukraine, under any pretext, without the government of Ukraine's permission.”
In a telephone conversation with Chancellor Angela Merkel, Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed concern about the worsening humanitarian disaster in the Ukraine.
"We continue to discuss possible formats of international assistance to the political settlement of the crisis in Ukraine," the Kremlin said in a statement.
Putin also briefed Merkel on the Russian initiative to provide humanitarian assistance to the civilian population in East Ukraine.
Canada has sent a third and final aircraft with military equipment for Ukraine, the country’s Defense Ministry reports on its website.
“One Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) CC-177 Globemaster III strategic airlifter departed from 8 Wing, Canadian Forces Base Trenton and will arrive in Ukraine over the weekend,” the statement reads.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said earlier in August that the non-kinetic equipment includes “helmets, ballistic eyewear, protective vests, first aid kits, tents, and sleeping bags.” The aid is intended to help Ukraine “protect its eastern border against Russian aggression,” the ministry said.
Britain’s Foreign Office has summoned Russia’s ambassador to the UK following reports that a small Russian column of armored vehicles crossed the Ukrainian border overnight.
Ambassador Aleksandr Yakovenko was summoned on Friday "to clarify reports of Russian military incursion into Ukraine,” the Foreign Office said in a statement.
Reports that the Ukrainian military shelled and partly destroyed a Russian armored column after it entered Ukraine overnight highlight the need for a swift and peaceful resolution of the conflict there, the United Nations said.
“We are aware of the reports in Ukraine, which we cannot verify independently, and will follow related developments very carefully,” UN spokesman Farhan Haq told reporters. “Such reports point to the urgent need for immediate de-escalation and resolution of the conflict through dialogue.” (Reuters)
Bilateral sanctions have damaged relations between Finland and Russia, Finnish President Sauli Niinist told Russia’s President Vladimir Putin at a meeting in Sochi.
"The catastrophe that happened in Ukraine is of course reflecting on all of us, affecting us all, and it has much broader implications than [just] local consequences," Niinist said. "The traditional relations between Russia and Finland have taken a toll as a result of these events."
Putin agreed with his counterpart, adding that the mutual trade between Finland and Russia dropped 8 percent amid East-West political tensions.
Niinist also called for an urgent resolution to the Ukrainian crisis. "I would therefore want to talk to you about the opportunities to resolve the Ukraine [crisis], to stop the negative string of events and contribute to stabilisation, because all of that indeed affects all of us," he said.
The Russian embassy has sent a second note to the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry, demand it comment on the possible detention of the Russian journalist Andrey Stenin by Ukraine’s security services, the diplomatic mission reported, as cited by RIA Novosti.
Contact with Stenin was lost on August 5. He was in Ukraine carrying out his duties as a war correspondent.
The date and time of the departure of a humanitarian convoy towards the Ukrainian border have not been specified yet, according to Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations. The head of its international department Sergey Karavaytsev said that “As far as we can tell, the convoy will be staying there [at a camp, organized in Russia’s Rostov region] for a few days”.
Regarding the delivery place of the aid, a spokesman for the Ministry told journalists that it would be decided “by the Russian and Ukrainian parties with the participation of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at the border.” ICRC representatives are on a visit to the camp, and a passage to 262 semi-trailers has been organized for Russian and foreign journalists with no barriers to filming the humanitarian aid delivery.
The International Committee of the Red Cross should be tasked with delivering Russian humanitarian aid to eastern regions of the country, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Border and customs control and clearance of humanitarian assistance must be implemented by the "competent authorities of Ukraine with the support and monitoring of the ICRC and the OSCE," the ministry says, adding the Red Cross will help in storing and distributing the aid.
14 August 2014
Three children and 12 adults have been killed and 19 others injured as a result of fighting in the town of Zugres in Donetsk region, the Donetsk administration reported on its website citing health authorities.
Last night, the town was at the epicenter of heavy fighting between Kiev troops and militia and came under artillery shelling, with mines exploding next to a school, a beach, the town stadium and a power station.
The UN says the Kiev government is responsible for the observance of international humanitarian law in the country and for the safety of civilians in east Ukraine, Spokesman for Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Stephane Dujarric has told a media briefing.
Clarification: We've made initial contact with #Russia-led aid convoy, Rostov region, #Russia. Many practical details to be clarified.
— ICRC (@ICRC) August 14, 2014
The Russian Foreign Ministry has called for an immediate ceasefire in eastern Ukraine to ensure the safety of a humanitarian aid convoy that will deliver some 2,000 tons of supplies and medicines to the area.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and his Ukrainian counterpart, Pavel Klimkin, have discussed practical details for the urgent delivery of humanitarian aid to people in conflict-torn eastern Ukraine. Providing security for the aid convoy by both the Kiev forces and the self-defense troops remains the key task, the ministers said in the phone conversation Thursday, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Moscow also urged the Ukrainian authorities to find out what has happened to missing Russian journalist Andrey Stenin.
Igor Strelkov, the field commander and defense minister of the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Donetsk, has resigned, according to a statement published on the local militia’s website. He will be replaced by Vladimir Kononov as military commander, the website said.
Anti-Kiev rebels seized control of a checkpoint south of Marinovka, near the border with Russia, following a ferocious battle with Kiev forces in recent days. The anti-Kiev forces deployed a sniper and anti-tank team, among other units, to take the checkpoint. The bodies of two Ukrainian soldiers were identified, as well as four tanks and one APC destroyed.
Head of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People's Republic Valery Bolotov has resigned his position, citing an injury that prevents him to work to the full extend. He said the republic's Defense Minister Igor Plotnitsky is likely to replace him and that he will remain among the officials of the unrecognized entity in another capacity.
Last week the Donetsk People's Republic, the other of the two self-proclaimed entities in eastern Ukraine, had its head Aleksandr Boroday replaced.
A Russian humanitarian convoy, consisting of 280 Kamaz trucks, keeps moving along the territory of Russia, a RIA Novosti correspondent on the ground reports. The convoy, which left the Moscow Region for east Ukraine on Tuesday, carries medicines, all kinds of food (including one for children) and essentials. The issue of the humanitarian corridor for the convoy still remains unresolved. It’s yet unclear where, when and how the cargo is going to be unloaded and distributed.
13 August 2014
Seven members of the Ukrainian radical nationalist Right Sector group have been killed and 13 wounded by anti-government forces in the Donetsk region in Ukraine’s east, according to representatives of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
A bus carrying the Right Sector militants reportedly tried to make its way through a checkpoint to an area controlled by self-defense forces. It was stopped by intense gunfire.
A graphic video of the damaged vehicle and the dead bodies around it was posted online Tuesday.
The Right Sector says the death toll from the incident is higher, and that the group lost 12 people in the attack, which the movement’s leader, Dmitry Yarosh, has promised to avenge.
The convoy of humanitarian aid for eastern Ukraine has left Voronezh, where it stayed overnight, and is moving towards Belgorod, RIA Novosti reported. Uncertainty remains as to how much time it will take for Ukraine to vet the 2,000 tons of cargo and let it in, once the trucks arrive at the Russian-Ukrainian border.
12 August 2014
The number of victims among the civilian population continues to grow due to the ongoing military action in the Donetsk region, according to the OSCE’s latest report.
“Civilians continue to leave Donbass, whilst shelling allegedly continues to take a significant toll on human life,” the report stated.
A member of the Kyiv Regional Administration Co-ordination Center for internally displaced persons told the OSCE mission in Ukraine that since July, the center has received over 9,000 requests from internally displaced families asking for assistance. Currently, almost 4,500 people stay in the center, with 90 percent of them women and children, the OSCE report said.
The #FreeAndrew flashmob has seen 250 employees of the Rossiya Segodnya information agency (formerly RIA Novosti) gather to support their colleague, war correspondent Andrey Stenin, who is missing in the east of Ukraine.
Stenin hasn’t been in touch since August 5, and reports have emerged that he was detained by Ukrainian law enforcement officials.
The Russian Investigative Committee has launched a criminal case over the kidnapping of the correspondent.
Russia’s Foreign Ministry has called on Ukrainian authorities to take urgent measures to save Stenin.
Russia is demanding that Kiev does everything necessary to find Andrey Stenin, a Russian photojournalist missing in Ukraine since last week. He was reportedly detained by Ukrainian security troops.
“Considering the habitual practice in today’s Ukraine to detain and kidnap media processionals, we cannot exclude that the experienced photo correspondent fell victim of a malicious attack,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said Tuesday.
She called on Kiev to protect journalists working in Ukraine, adding that Stenin’s continued disappearance is causing growing concern in Russia.
Russia’s Emergencies Ministry has reportedly sent a humanitarian convoy that will deliver a total of 2,000 tons of food, medication, and drinking water to southeastern Ukraine. Some 280 trucks carrying the aid have left the Moscow region and headed towards the border, Itar-Tass reports, citing its correspondent at the scene.
11 August 2014
Self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine are prepared for a major counter attack in the next couple of days, according to the DNR’s new leader, Aleksander Zakharchenko.
“We are ready for a full-out offensive,” Zakharchenko said at the Donetsk People’s Republic leadership’s meeting.
“Self-defense forces have enough weaponry to carry out the offensive,” he added.
Moscow and Kiev have agreed on a humanitarian mission under the authority of the Red Cross, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated.
“With careful optimism, I can now say that, I think, all possible and impossible pretexts have been dismissed. I hope that in the very nearest future this humanitarian action will take place under the authority of the Red Cross,” Lavrov said.
“We’ve agreed on all details with the Ukrainian leadership,” the Foreign Minister declared.
He also expressed hope that “Western partners won’t put a spoke in the wheel and will think about the people who are badly in need of water and electricity,” Lavrov said.
Russia will dispatch humanitarian aid to East Ukraine the moment details are agreed to by all parties involved, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Civilians should leave Donetsk and Lugansk before the Ukrainian troops start a major assault on them, spokesman for the Ukrainian Security and Defense Service said.
“The anti-terrorist campaign will be continued. Civilians should better leave Donetsk and Lugansk as we are right about to liberate it,” he said at a media briefing.
He also claimed that there is a panic among the militia, with many proposing to provide intelligence in exchange for clemency.
“Those who cooperate will see their punishment moderated,” the Ukrainian official said. “They will live and have a chance to answer before the law, with the mitigating circumstances taken into account.”
Ukrainian military are shelling two districts in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, said the city council’s press service. “Two electric substations are without power, which leaves nearly 5,000 people, who live in either multi-story buildings or private houses, with no electricity,” its statement says. The sounds of blasts and firing can be heard all around the city, and some public transport routes have been changed in the tense situation.
568 military have been killed since the start of the Kiev campaign in eastern Ukraine, Andrey Lysenko, spokesman for the Ukrainian Security Council said at a briefing on Monday. He added that “2,120 Ukrainian military have been injured as at 9am today.”
On Sunday evening, 106 inmates escaped from a Donetsk prison after it came under artillery fire, the city administration reported. One inmate was killed in the shelling, while 18 others were injured. Some of the escapees returned later.
The Ukrainian military continued the shelling of Donetsk on Monday morning where one of the city’s factories is located, causing power disruption in the region.
Ukraine is at risk of an environmental disaster as Kiev’s army continues to bomb the Donestk Region, nearly hitting its largest chemical plant that stores lethal agents, the plant’s spokesperson warned. The minimum impact zone would be at least 300 km.
“Due to the irresponsible actions of the Ukrainian army, citizens of Ukraine, Russia, and Belarus are exposed to a deadly threat from an ecological disaster on a daily basis, the size of which cannot be predicted,” Pavel Brykov, a spokesman for the Stirol chemical plant in Gorlovka, said in an “urgent” YouTube message on Sunday.
According to Brykov, an accident at the plant could cause a toxic leak of nitrochlorobenzene – a lethal substance which, if it enters the human body, affects the liver, heart, and bone marrow, causing death.
The minimum impact of the accident would be at least 300 kilometers, Brykov said, adding that the risks of the accident are being silenced in the Ukrainian media.
10 August 2014
Ukraine’s National Guard will receive a squadron of unmanned aerial vehicles on Monday, the country’s Interior Minister, Arsen Avakov, wrote on his Facebook page. He noted that the drones will be used for reconnaissance missions.
Moscow was in talks with Kiev, the Red Cross and the UN on sending humanitarian aid to eastern Ukraine, Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, belives.
"We think it is a priority now to reach an agreement with the Ukrainian side, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the international UN humanitarian agencies on the necessity to send emergency humanitarian aid to the (eastern Ukrainian Regions) of Lugansk and Donetsk,” Lavrov said..
The FM stressed that a ceasefire between the Kiev government and the self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine is possible.
“The ceasefire is not only possible, but is urgently needed. Ukrainian authorities signed up for the necessity of an immediate ceasefire back in April this year when they adopted the Geneva declaration,” he said.
Confrontation continues in eastern Ukraine as Kiev's troops are trying to encircle Donetsk and Gorlovka. The focus of the confrontation is the city of Krasni Liman and its neighborhood.
The city is strategically important because taking it over would allow the Ukrainian troops to sever a road connecting Donetsk and Lugansk. On Saturday, Kiev reported capturing the city, but militia sources said the report was premature, as the city continues to switch hands.
Sunday hostilities also involved a battle for Illyuvaisk, a city some 20 km east of Donetsk, which Ukrainian forces failed to capture.
There are also reports of intensive fighting in Saur-Mogila, a strategically important height in the eastern Donetsk region, which was held by militia attacking an encircled group of Kiev troops in the neighboring Lugansk region. The monumental stela erected on top of a hill was seriously damaged in the fighting.
Ukrainian troops continue shelling Lugansk, Donetsk and other militia-controlled cities, targeting them with mortar fire, artillery shells and rockets fired by multiple-rocket launchers.
Overnight Russia handed over five officers of the 72th brigade to Ukraine, who were earlier released without charges in a case of alleged use of incendiaries against residential areas, Ukraine confirmed.
The officers were briefly detained by Russia on suspicion of shelling a Ukrainian city with phosphorous shells in violation of international law regulating warfare. Russia chose not to press charges, saying the detainees were forced to follow an order by their superiors.
A ceasefire by militias is only possible if Kiev's troops take a similar step, a spokesman for the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic said on Sunday. The statement comes after a Saturday declaration that the region fighting against the Ukrainian military crackdown is prepared for a truce.
Further negotiations would be possible if Kiev withdraws troops from the Donetsk region and agrees to formal engagement in negotiations as opposed to informal consultations, the statement said.
Kiev earlier insisted that it would stop military action only if the militias unconditionally lay down arms.
09 August 2014
The Ukrainian army is shelling residential areas in Donetsk with multiple rocket launchers, self-defense forces told Interfax. Three targets were hit and two one-story buildings were destroyed.
The self-defense forces added that one person was injured and taken to hospital. The Grad system was reportedly used during the bombing.
Earlier, there were reports that self-defense forces hit several Ukrainian army bases.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has signed a law extending the age limit of the country’s troop reserves, the president’s press service reported. The new age cap has been increased from 50 to 60 years of age for privates and from 55 to 60 years of age for junior and senior officers.
There will be no hot water during the winter in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Nikolaev, the city's administration announced. The decision was prompted by efforts to save gas, Itar-Tass quoted local lawmakers as saying. There are more than 500,000 people living in the city.
Following the announcement, Mayor Yuriy Granaturov said that he believes “no one will freeze.”
Earlier, there were reports that Kiev turned off the hot water supply in the entire city due to lack of funds.
Self-defense forces have freed 12 “strategically important” residential areas in the Donetsk and Lugansk regions, according to the Twitter account of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov called for "urgent measures for preventing an impending humanitarian catastrophe in southeastern regions" of Ukraine while speaking with his US counterpart John Kerry.
"John Kerry confirmed such work is being carried out with the Kiev authorities,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
US President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel agreed during a Saturday telephone call that Russia will face additional consequences if it intervenes in Ukraine without Kiev's consent. "The two leaders agreed that any Russian intervention in Ukraine, even under purported 'humanitarian' auspices, without the formal, express consent and authorization of the government of Ukraine is unacceptable, violates international law, and will provoke additional consequences," the White House said in a statement.
Kiev may impose sanctions against Russia as early as August 13, Ukrainian Justice Minister Pavel Petrenko said.
"The Verkhovna Rada will adopt the law on Tuesday August 12, and on Wednesday August 13 the National Security and Defense Council will enforce the sanctions which were proposed by the government,” Petrenko said during the ‘Shuster Live’ program on Ukrainian television.
The list of Ukrainian sanctions, above all, include a ban on the transit of Russian gas through Ukrainian territory to customers in Europe.
The situation in Donetsk by 5pm local time (14:00 GMT) remains “tense” as loud booms are heard across the city, the city’s mayor said in a statement. It also said a woman and a child have been recovered from under debris of one of the houses destroyed earlier on Saturday.
The situation concerning the key services infrastructure in Lugansk continues to be catastrophic, according to the city council. “The city has been without electricity and running water, as well as mobile networking and working landlines for seven days now,” a statement from the authorities read. Fuel reserves have been depleted as well, and no new deliveries are taking place. Fighting in the area is ongoing amid these interruptions, Itar-Tass reports. Information regarding casualties has not been coming in.
Ukrainian troops have captured the city of Krasniy Luch in the Lugansk region, RIA Novosti reported, citing a militia source. This puts Donetsk and its satellite city Gorlovka in a situation of being surrounded.
Early morning in Donetsk saw an artillery strike on the region in the vicinity of the airport, which is in the hands of the separatists who use it as a base of operations. According to regional authorities, the first explosions could be heard at 05:00AM, causing almost no damage, apart from a few broken windows in nearby buildings. The night has otherwise been marked by a reduction in hostilities, RIA Novosti reports.
08 August 2014
Russia’s Investigative Committee has petitioned to arrest five Ukrainian army men accused of using prohibited war methods against the civilian population in the east of Ukraine, according to the official representative of the Investigative Committee Vladimir Markin.
The military personnel are currently in Russia, having crossed the border with their battalion earlier in the week. They are suspected of committing crimes connected with the use of forbidden means and methods of waging war.
The detained are also being assessed for potential involvement in the use phosphorus bombs in the combat zone and missile strikes targeting Russian territory, RIA Novosti reported.
“In their testimony, the detained admit the fact of participating in the military activity and the use of various kinds of weapons. At the same time, they deny having used these weapons against the civilian population,” Markin said.
A sanction list of 172 people from Russia and other countries, and 65 entities, mostly Russian residents, has been presented to the National Council of Security and Defense by Ukraine’s cabinet of ministers, said Ukraine’s PM Arseny Yatsenyuk at a media briefing in Kiev.
The draft law on sanctions, developed by the government provided for 26 sanctions.
"We propose, in particular, sanctions that include the freezing of assets, the prohibition of business activities, a ban on the privatization of state property,” he added. Ukraine’s parliament is to vote for or against imposing sanctions on Tuesday.
Fifteen Ukrainian military have been killed over the last 24 hours, according to spokesman for Ukrainian Security Council, Andrey Lysenko.
“Over the last 24 hours, seven armed forces personnel and eight border patrol agents have been killed, while 79 were injured,” Lysenko said at a briefing.
07 August 2014
Four civilians have been killed and 18 people wounded as a result of Thursday’s shelling of residential areas in the city of Donetsk, the region’s administration reported, citing health officials.
Self-defense forces have shot down a Ukrainian military jet on the outskirts of the city of Yenakievo, northeast of Donetsk. The aircraft crashed and exploded between the villages of Rozovka and Zhdanovka, reports LifeNews. Journalists who were in the area said they heard the blast and then saw a plume of smoke. According to one reporter, the pilots managed to eject. The type of the plane is currently unknown, but sources told LifeNews it could be SU-25 or MiG-29.
Aleksandr Boroday, the prime minister of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk (DPR) has announced he will resign. He will be replaced by Aleksandr Zakharchenko, one of militia commanders and also a leader of the ‘Oplot’ movement.
“I came here as a crisis manager, a start-upper, if you want. I’ve managed to achieve a lot in the past several months, the DPR has been established as a state,” Boroday told a media conference in Donetsk, as cited by RIA Novosti.
Unlike Boroday, who originally comes from Moscow, Zakharchenko was born in the Donetsk region. Boroday was appointed prime minister of the DPR on May 16. Boroday will reportedly continue his work at the DPR government as an adviser to the prime minister.
Five civilians were killed and ten more injured in shelling in the city of Gorlovka in the Donetsk region, the city council website reported. The statement added that part of the city was left without power as an electrical substation was bombed in the Stroitely district. Water supplies were also cut-off in the city.
Fighting continues on the outskirts of the town of Snezhnoye in the Donetsk region. Kiev forces are attempting to relieve a group of the military and National Guard troops, encircled by the militia near the border between Ukraine’s Donetsk region and Russia, the press service for the self-declared People’s Republic of Donetsk told RIA Novosti. So far, self-defense has reportedly managed to repel attacks.
Activists and police have clashed in Kiev’s city center after city workers tried to dismantle the Maidan camp on Independence Square. Camp residents are currently fortifying the old barricades and building new ones. It’s not known how many people were injured. The majority of those wounded were from stones thrown by protesters.
“Police were carrying out public order maintenance and the work of communal services, but then the camp caught fire, and the fire brigades are now dealing with the blaze,” the Kiev police press service stated.
#Ukraine: Black smoke billows as tires burn on Kiev's Maidan Square http://t.co/oJPq9PIhzhpic.twitter.com/lnbZoNQajc
— RT (@RT_com) August 7, 2014
Sources within the police believe the camp residents deliberately set their tents on fire to prevent the city workers from doing their job. There’s also information that there are weapons in the camp.
Law enforcement officials and Kiev authorities have been urging the activists to leave Maidan and free the seized buildings for months, but the activists have refused to do so.
Ukrainian government forces bombed an Orthodox Christian church in the center of Lugansk, according to the ITAR-TASS news agency.
“The Ukrainian artillery launched a shell towards the church. The building was not completely destroyed, but the walls took a heavy impact,” said members from the self-proclaimed Peoples Republic of Lugansk, who also added there were no anti-government forces within a radius of a few kilometers of the church.
The church in the center of Lugansk was not the only building to take a pounding. Smart apartment blocks have been shelled by Ukrainian government forces, forcing local inhabitants to flee. The local hospital has also been hit, while water and gas supplies have been damaged.
NATO and Ukraine discussed creating a possible Western alliance on Thursday, which would bolster Ukraine’s defensive capabilities, a Kiev government statement said.
The meeting, between NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen and Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseny Yatseniuk, saw the two sides propose the creation of a NATO trust fund, which could be used to increase Ukraine’s defensive ability in areas such as command and control, communications and cyber defense, the statement added.
06 August 2014
The EU expects to take joint action with Russia on the de-escalation of the Ukrainian crisis in the near future, said European Ambassador to Russia Vygaudas Ušackas.
The issue of sanctions is a secondary issue, as there are more important and essential matters that need to be promptly resolved, he added.
About 200 Ukrainian troops out of a group of more than 400 soldiers, who had earlier been allowed to cross into Russia after requesting sanctuary, have returned to Ukraine, Vasily Malayev, a spokesperson for Russia’s FSB border-guard service in the Rostov region told Itar-Tass.
The majority of those soldiers understand that back in Ukraine they may face responsibility for leaving their positions.
“However, they still decided to go home,” Malayev said.
Ukraine's defense minister has carried out President Pyotr Poroshenko's order to fire the officers responsible for resupplying and up-keeping the National Guard, RIA Novosti reports.
The Russian Investigative Committee said Wednesday it had gathered evidence that Ukraine has used prohibited weapons against civilians in Eastern Ukraine.
Evidence show that prohibited weapons, which are similar to ‘phosphorus bombs’ in composition, were used intentionally against civilians in Donetsk Region, in an area where were no military targets, RIA Novosti quoted the committee’s spokesman, Vladimir Markin, as saying.
A representative of Russia’s General Staff said late July that the Ukrainian army had used phosphorous bombs in eastern Ukraine at least six times.
300 police in Donetsk have defected to the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR), according to the interior minister’s adviser, Anton Gerashenko.
“I spoke to the head of the Donetsk police, Konstantin Pozhidaev. According to his data, 300 police in Donetsk have voluntarily defected to the DNR,” Gerashenko told ‘112 Ukraine’ TV channel. “We have information on all of these people. In the near future we will make it public, so that all of those citizens know that long prison terms await them.”
The official said only 10-15 percent of the Donetsk police remains loyal to Kiev.
A lack of food has been registered in the town of Shakhtersk - just over 50km from the regional center of Donetsk – as a result of the Ukrainian army attacks, Russian news portal LifeNews reported.
#Donetsk hotels are welcoming guests with this warning #Ukrainepic.twitter.com/lop1JMOiSV
— Bojan Pancevski (@bopanc) August 5, 2014
Self-defense forces have warned that they will blow up a bridge connecting the center of Gorlovka with its northern suburbs in an attempt to prevent the advance of the Ukrainian military. The militia already blew up a pedestrian bridge which runs parallel.
05 August 2014
.
Ukraine's envoy to UN: the situation in the country is managable by the government, there is no humanitarian crisis
— Alexey Yaroshevsky (@Yaro_RT) August 5, 2014
Yeah, guys and girls, he really did say that. The situation is manageble. Jesus wept
— Alexey Yaroshevsky (@Yaro_RT) August 5, 2014
.
Moscow has offered to send a humanitarian aid mission to eastern Ukraine under the aegis of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Russia's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin said at the emergency UN Security Council briefing.
Churkin offered internationally-monitored convoys of humanitarian aid to be sent from Russia to E.Ukraine
— Alexey Yaroshevsky (@Yaro_RT) August 5, 2014
These would include food, water, electricity generators and other vital necessities
— Alexey Yaroshevsky (@Yaro_RT) August 5, 2014
More than 117,000 people have been displaced in eastern Ukraine and an estimated 168,000 people have fled to Russia as of August 1, UN refugee agency UNHCR reported during the emergency UN Security Council meeting on the crisis called by Russia.
UNHCR’s European director, Vincent Cochetel, said the number registered by local Ukrainian authorities “is in our view a low estimate,” since most men fleeing did not register in order to avoid being drafted into the Ukrainian army and sent back into the conflict zone.
In total, some 730,000 Ukrainians have crossed into Russia since January, according to estimates from Russian authorities, Cochetel said. The UNHCR believes this number is “credible,” he added.
Reports from Donetsk say the city area was hit by two airstrikes over the last hour.
Multiple twitter accounts from #Donetsk reported at least 2 air strikes in the city within the last 45 min. #Ukraine
— Natalia Melnychuk (@pravolivo) August 5, 2014
Sounded like air strike in donetsk a few minutes ago. Some reports that rebel road block in east of city may have been hit.
— Simon Kruse (@crusoes) August 5, 2014
The Ukrainian army is using heavy weaponry in eastern Ukraine, such as Uragan multiple rocket launchers and cruise missiles, RIA Novosti reported citing local militia. Cruise missiles were spotted flying over the city of Gorlovka on Tuesday, while Uragan launchers were seen near the town of Snezhniy, witnesses told the news agency.
At least two civilians have been killed amid fighting in the Petrovsky district of Donetsk, according to the City Council, as cited by RIA Novosti.
The City Council also said that active military action was reported on the border of Petrovsky district and the towns of Aleksandrovka and Mar’ynka at 4 p.m. GMT.
About 730,000 people have fled Ukraine for Russia this year, according to the European head of the United Nations agency for refugees, which cited compiled Russian data.
"The 730,000, is the 'plus' compared to other years," said Vincent Cochetel. "...Sometimes they just walk across the border, they come with plastic bags. Many of them are really destitute."
The figure excluded people who would have normally crossed the border for trade or tourism purposes, Cochetel said.
An additional 117,000 people have been displaced inside Ukraine – a number that is growing by about 1,200 per day, he added.
Russia called on the UN Security Council to hold an emergency meeting regarding the humanitarian situation in Ukraine, said Russia's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin. The meeting is expected to be held at 9 pm GMT.
A Ukrainian soldier from the 51 infantry brigade, who was earlier wounded, crossed the Russian border and was treated at a Russian hospital. He told the ITAR-TASS news agency, on conditions of anonymity, that after returning to his country he was questioned and declared a deserter, while his relatives were threatened by the authorities.
“There is an investigation ongoing. We are accused of non-compliance with orders and of leaving behind military hardware and weapons,” he said, adding that all soldiers who returned after crossing into Russia were suspended from service. The soldier said that they are questioned several times a day, sometimes at night too.
“The most frightening is that the [Ukrainian military] is threatening our relatives and close ones with ‘big problems’. We are prohibited to call them. The conscripts are especially tightly controlled,” he said.
The soldier added that he “envies those who did not return from Russia like us, but were held captive by local militia.”
The number of internally displaced people in Ukraine has reached 117,000 people, the office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Geneva said Tuesday. It also said that 168,000 people have fled to Russia.
Most people who left their homes, but remain in Ukraine, are from the country’s eastern Lugansk and Donetsk Regions – some 102,600 people, according to UN estimates.
A cameramen and a driver of ANNA News video agency have been injured in Lugansk, eastern Ukraine. The TV crew heard explosions in the city and was going to film the aftermath of the attack, when their car was also hit by a blast.
"We saw some people at the bus stop," driver Aleksey, who suffered a wound to his chest, said in a video released by ANNA News. "And the explosion took place, just a few meters from our car. Our vehicle blocked most of the blast, so the civilians at the bus stop weren't killed. Shell fragments hit our vehicle and three of them injured me".
The news agency’s cameramen, Mikhail Andreev, received an arm injury.
The Ukrainian army is shelling the city of Gorlovka in eastern Ukraine using multiple-launch rocket systems, Itar-Tass quotes a self-defense forces representative as saying. The army is reportedly using BM-21 Grad and BM-30 Smerch rocket launchers. The self-defense claims that the systems are targeting residential areas, where no militia troops are positioned.
04 August 2014
The Ukrainian Interior Ministry has put Russian politicians on a wanted list. This comes days after criminal cases were launched against the head of Russia’s Liberal Democratic Party, Vladimir Zhirinovsky, Communist leader Gennady Zuganov and Fair Russia party leader Sergey Mironov. Ukraine suspects all of them in “financing separatism”.
Earlier, the adviser to the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Anton Geraschenko said that the Ministry is going to ask Interpol to ban the three wanted politicians as well as Russia's defense minister Sergey Shoigu from travelling.
“We understand that it will be impossible to arrest them on Russia’s soil. We launch different criminal cases and are going to file a request to Interpol to ban those personalities for traveling to other countries,” Geraschenko said.
In case Interpol refuses to take actions, the Ukrainian Ministry plans to ask countries of Europe and North America to take measures.
OSCE observers have left the Russian border checkpoint Gukovo due to continuing battles on the Ukrainian side of the border, the Russian border guard reported.
The checkpoint came under fire from the Ukrainian side on Sunday as the foreign observers, who had been invited to confirm Russia’s reports of Ukrainian shillings of its territory and assess Kiev’s claims that Russia is supplying weapons into Ukraine.
03 August 2014
DPR Representatives claim to have found the wreckage of a downed Ukrainian Su-25 fighter that was shot down over Donetsk on Saturday.
"The plane was shot down the day before, in the evening on August 2, but the militia had no confirmation, special teams found the downed jets on Sunday," anti-Kiev forces headquarters told Interfax. The debris was found between towns of Makeevka and Yenakievo.
A group of OSCE monitors deployed to the Gukovo Russian border checkpoint in the Rostov Region witnessed a shell hitting the facility after it was fired from Ukrainian territory, a spokesman for the FSB’s Border Guards division told Itar-Tass.
The shell exploded but caused no casualties among the observers, or among the personnel at the checkpoint, he added. A damage report would be available after an assessment, which would start after the clashes nearby in the Ukrainian territory are over, the spokesman said.
An encircled unit of the Ukrainian troops is negotiating with the militia about surrendering, the militia told RIA Novosti.
The Ukrainian troops have been cut off from supply lines in the Sverdlovsk area of the Lugansk Region not far from the Russian border, where they were sent to take control of the border but were trapped instead.
The militia said that the Ukrainian unit offered to destroy some 70 military vehicles in their possession and leave behind all small arms and ammunition, if they were guaranteed safe passage to Kiev-controlled territory.
The offer was not taken up by the militia, who said they wanted to capture the armored vehicles intact, they told the news agency.
Fighting is continuing over the weekend near Donetsk, with residents reporting regular explosions west of the city.
Ukrainian troops claimed on Saturday to have taken the towns of Krasnogorovka and Staromikhailovka near Donetsk.
Meanwhile the militia said Saturday they had fended off Kiev’s attacks on Krasnogorovka and Maryinka.
There are reports of serious damage to the region’s power grid, with several neighborhoods experiencing outages.
02 August 2014
A protest against the war in Ukraine took place in Republic Square in the center of the French capital, Paris.
The venue was decorated with Russian, Ukrainian and French flags as well as flags of the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics.
The demonstrators held banners in their hands, reading “Stop the war,” “Save the Children of Donbas from Ukrainian Army,” "Nobel prize winner Obama stop killing people in the Ukraine.”
The action gathered around 200 people, which included Russians and Ukrainians living in France as well as members of local left-wing parties and anti-war organizations.
A rally to commemorate the victims of mass killings in Odessa and demand an end to Kiev’s military operation in south-eastern Ukraine took place in the Italian capital, Rome.
On May 2, 48 anti-Kiev protestors died after Ukrainian radicals set fire to the Trade Unions House in the city of Odessa.
NATO has withdrawn its written confirmation to Deutsche Welle television that Kiev government forces are using short-range ballistic missiles against insurgents in eastern Ukraine, calling its previous statement a “communication error.”
“Ukraine has encountered serious threats to its security, and can use whatever means necessary and proportionate to defend itself. But NATO does not officially confirm that ballistic missiles have been used in the conflict,” says the revised statement from NATO headquarters in Brussels, which notably is not an outright denial either.
The use of ballistic missiles – thought to be Soviet-designed SS21 Scarab – was reported by CNN earlier this week, citing US intelligence sources.
Odessians remember the dead on massacre 3 month anniversary release balloons at trade union building #odessa#ukrainepic.twitter.com/8rv0MsOiF9
— Rachael Newport (@rachaelruptly) August 2, 2014
The UN has delivered to Ukraine the first 12-ton shipment of humanitarian aid for refugees from the war-torn east of the country, local authorities reported.
Kiev said as many as 15,000 internally displaced people had applied for help since the hostilities started in April.
Earlier, Ukraine rejected humanitarian aid offered by Russia, which is facing a refugee crisis of its own as people from Ukraine are fleeing across the border.
Ukrainian Prosecutor General Vitaly Yarema said he has launched more than 60 criminal cases of treason.
They are part of “over 2,000 criminal proceedings, in which over 1,500 [people] are involved” opened over crimes related to “terrorism and separatism” in southeast Ukraine, Itar-Tass reported him as saying.
In addition, the Prosecutor General’s Office has opened about 40 cases of desertion from the Ukrainian army and evasion of military service, he added.
Sofia residents gathered to commemorate the three-month anniversary of the Odessa fire on Saturday, mourning the day that 43 pro-Russia activists died when the Trade Unions House was set on alight following ongoing clashes in the city.
Members of the "Together with Russia" and the "Organization of the Compatriots of Russia in Bulgaria" groups released 48 black balloons into the sky, lit candles and held photographs of the deadly event.
The event passed peaceful with police presence in front of the embassy.
Nine artillery projectiles fired from Ukraine have exploded in Russia’s southwest border Rostov region, a spokesman for the Customs Department of the Federal Security Service, Vasily Malaev, told Itar-Tass.
“They were probably rockets fired from BM-21 Grad rocket launcher,” he said, adding that the shells didn’t cause any destruction in the area and no one was hurt.
rumours of possible provocation today in #odessa on massacre 3 month anniversary #protest#ukraine
— Rachael Newport (@rachaelruptly) August 2, 2014
Interpol has put the former energy minister of Ukraine, Eduard Stavitsky, on the international wanted list on Kiev’s behalf. The organization says that Ukraine is accusing him of misappropriation and embezzlement of property. The Ukrainian Prosecutor General's Office issued an arrest warrant for Stavitsky in March, 2014.
The number of Ukrainian refugees housed in tent camps in Russia is approaching 40,000, a spokesman for the Russian Emergencies Ministry said. “As of this morning, there are 39,265 people, including 12,735 children, living in 537 temporary shelters.” Aleksandr Dobryshevsky said.
The figure jumped by almost 2,000 since Friday morning. The ministry is working on transporting the refugees from the border Rostov and Crimea regions into other parts of Russia to spread out the costs of accommodating the refugees on regional budgets.
The actual number of people, who have fled Ukraine amid the ongoing hostilities in the east of the country, is likely much higher, since many Ukrainians have relatives in Russia and could turn to them for help instead of choosing to live in the refugee shelters.
01 August 2014
The Russian and German foreign ministers underscored the need for moves towards a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine in a phone call on Friday, Russia's Foreign Ministry said.
It said in a statement that the ministers, Sergey Lavrov and Frank-Walter Steinmeier, had agreed on the need for "implementation of measures which in fact should lead to a cessation of military activities in southeast Ukraine and to the guaranteeing of safe conditions for the investigation into the reasons of the Malaysian Boeing catastrophe." (Reuters)
A Ukrainian Tu-143 reconnaissance drone has been downed near the town of Shakhtersk in eastern Ukraine, the anti-Kiev rebels claim. There has been no official response yet from Kiev.
Kiev’s military operation in the southeast of the country is genocide of the Ukrainian people, Chaika said.
“The international community should give its evaluation to those events. The genocide of the Ukrainian people is being committed,” Chaika is cited by RIA-Novosti.
Chaika believes that criminal proceedings over the events in Ukraine must be imitated in The Hague’s International Criminal Court.
A three-year-old girl who is in serious condition has been evacuated from eastern Ukrainian city of Lugansk, said Russia’s Children's Rights Commissioner, Pavel Astakhov. He helped to transport the child along with the volunteers from a Russian social movement.
“The doctors said that they can no longer provide medical treatment [for the girl]. Kiev authorities don’t arrange humanitarian corridors, each time the transportation is unpredictable, one can easily come under fire,” said the statement from the volunteers.
The girl has an infectious disease which triggered serious complications. She is now at hospital in Rostov Region, southwestern Russia.
The Ukrainian military confirmed that one of their units was ambushed by armed militia in Shakhtyorsk, a contested city in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian media reported that at least 21 troops, including a battalion commander, were killed in the firefight, which also left many people injured.
Militia reported earlier on Thursday that they destroyed more than 30 armored vehicles of the Ukrainian army in Shakhtyorsk.
31 July 2014
Russia’s General Staff chief, Gen. Valery Gerasimov has called “unacceptable” the use by the Kiev military of combat air force, heavy – including rocket – artillery and missiles against civilians. The comment was made during a phone conversation with US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Gen. Martin Dempsey, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The press center for Kiev’s “anti-terrorist operation” has announced that a humanitarian corridor was organized for the civilian population of Lugansk to ensure that first aid reaches the area.
This was also done with the aim “to secure the lives and health of residents of the temporarily occupied areas in the Lugansk region” as well as “to prevent the sabotage-reconnaissance groups and the leaders of terrorist groups from penetrating into other areas of Ukraine as refugees,” the press center said on its Facebook page.
The ceasefire will be effective 200 meters to the left and right of the indicated corridor every day from 10 am till 4 pm.
Ukraine's parliament has approved deals with the Netherlands and Australia, allowing them to send some 950 "armed personnel" to secure the MH17 crash site in war-torn east Ukraine, AFP reports.
The Ukrainian military has stopped attacks near the MH17 crash site, but the eastern militia still conducts assaults in the area, the Facebook page of what Kiev calls “the anti-terrorist operation” (ATO) stated, as cited by Reuters.
"On July 31, troops involved in the active ATO phase are not conducting military operations apart from protecting their own positions from attack. But mercenary fighters of the Russian terrorists [sic] are not respecting any international agreements and requests," it said, referring to the anti-Kiev rebels in eastern Ukraine.
Russian investigators are subject to systematic and purposeful fire, the head of the Russian Investigative Committee Aleksandr Bastrykin stated, as quoted by ITAR-TASS.
“Risking their lives, our investigators are fulfilling their duty in the region close to the Ukrainian border… Our investigation and operational groups are subject to purposeful and methodic fire, attacks from the Ukrainian military. But our guys, following our traditions, are no cowards, carry out their professional duty as they should,” Bastrykin said.
“I gave the order to retreat, as soon as there is a life threat. We shouldn’t lose a single person in these hard times,” he added.
Around 36,600 Ukrainian refugees, including 13,200 children, are staying at temporary accommodation centers in Russia, according to Emergencies Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Drobyshevsky.
“Russia's Emergencies Ministry is organizing work jointly with Russian regions for [the refugees’] accommodation and comprehensive support," he said, as cited by ITAR-TASS.
RT’s Roman Kosarev have visited one of 497 centers for Ukrainian refugees to speak to those who've crossed over to Russia.
Three civilians, including a teenager, have been killed over the last 24 hours in Lugansk, the city council said on its website.
“As a result of constant shelling three civilians, including a 15-year-old boy, died and seven civilians have been injured. The ambulance service had to respond to 84 calls,” the council said in a statement.
A total of 363 Ukrainian servicemen have been killed and 1,434 people injured since the start of the military operation in eastern Ukraine, spokesman for the National Security and Defence Council Andrei Lysenko said.
Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) experts began a monitoring mission Wednesday along the Russian-Ukrainian border, visiting the border points of Gukovo and Donetsk. The monitors will be examining the situation at the border for at least three months.
30 July 2014
Spokeswoman of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Lugansk, Oksana Chigrina who was blacklisted by EU told RIA Novosti that was not upset by this news.
"I'm not upset. This does not affect my life. It will not get worse. I'm not planning to go to Europe, and even more so to the US. I am a patriot of my homeland."
The Ukrainian Parliament intends to consider amendments to the Tax Code in order to impose a temporary military fee of 1.5 percent of working citizens' salary, RIA Novosti reports. It is planned that the new tax rate will be valid until the end of the year to finance the armed forces.
The G7 powers have called on all sides in the Ukrainian conflict to ensure an immediate and long-term ceasefire, the group said in a statement. The seven leading western economies said they “are still confident” that the conflict that claims an increasing number of casualties should have a political solution.
The G7 also urged Russia to ensure more efficient control of the Russian-Ukrainian border, including via the OSCE monitors, RIA Novosti reported.
363 Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and 1,430 more injured since the start of the punitive operation in the south-east of the country, according to the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has formed a working group to ensure access for international experts to the MH17 crash site. The group will arrive in Minsk on Thursday to put forward Kiev’s claims.
“We want the OSCE to carry out its monitoring [mission, for them to ensure] that the Ukrainian army is not carrying out any counterproductive actions at the crash site,” said Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Groysman.
Russia will address the UN and the OSCE with the suggestion to urgently form a humanitarian mission for the east of Ukraine, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated.
Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has agreed to host talks on the Ukraine crisis in Minsk, the capital city of Belarus, following a request from his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko. Moscow welcomes Belarus’s move, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, but added that one meeting would not be enough to solve the problems.
Five people have been killed and 23 wounded as a result of the Ukraine army’s artillery shelling of the city of Gorlovka in the Donetsk region, according to the Novorossia news agency. On Tuesday, 17 people, including 3 children, were killed in the eastern Ukrainian city as the violent confrontation between Kiev forces and the militia continues.
The Lugansk militia has stated that they found a fragment of a ballistic missile that hasn’t explode in full, the city’s military commander, Sergey Grachev, told RIA-Novosti.
“I was there today, at the location where this warhead lies. It’s not exploded in full, only the cluster, but the warhead itself is intact,” he said.
“It’s big, slightly shorter than my height, although I’m 1 meter 88 centimeters tall,” Grachev added.
A three-year-old child has died during the shelling of a bus with refugees in eastern Ukraine, and other 12 people have been wounded. That’s according to the South-Eastern Front information center coordinator Konstantin Knyrik, as cited by the Itar-Tass news agency.
One of the passengers is currently in critical condition.
The OSCE mission could stay for more than three months in Russia's southern Rostov Region on the border with Ukraine, if the organization approves the decision, chief of the OSCE mission in Rostov Paul Picard told journalists on Wednesday.
Currently the mission is represented by four OSCE observers. A group of 15 more people are on their way to the region.
"We will be monitoring border-crossing points Gukovo and Donetsk, we will have several teams who will be on round-the-clock duty at border checkpoints by two observers," Picard said.
Self-defense fighters in eastern Ukraine’s Lugansk Region claim they have found fragments of a ballistic missile.
“I’ve been where the warhead lies today. It has not been fully broken, its cassettes detonated, but the warhead has remained intact,” Sergey Grachev, the Lugansk military commandant Sergey Grachev told RIA Novosti.
The fragment was found near Vergunka railway station.
“[The warhead] is big, a little smaller than me, and I’m 1.8 meters tall,” Grachev said.
29 July 2014
Nine children are being treated at a hospital after suffering from wounds inflicted by a bomb in Berestovaya village in Donetsk region, an adviser to the Minister of Internal Affairs Anton Gerashchenko said on his Facebook page, RIA reports.
“All are in serious condition, requiring urgent amputation of hands, feet. Some lost their eyesight forever,“ Gerashchenko wrote.
Some 1,236 Ukrainian servicemen have been injured during the so-called "anti-terrorist operation" in Lugansk and Donetsk regions, according to the latest figures from the director of the military medical department of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine Vitaly Andronati.
A Chechen based NGO is sending $7.5 million in humanitarian aid to Eastern Ukraine, the head of Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov said via his official pages on social networks.
According to Kadyrov, these funds are intended for the purchase of medical supplies and mobile generators for hospitals. The minister of health of the Chechen Republic is tasked with delivering the funds.
Russia's Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin said that new sanctions against the Russian United Shipbuilding Corporation (USC) were imposed because Washington perceives Russia to be a threat on this market.
Решение Обамы наложить санкции на ОСК - верный знак того, что российское военное кораблестроение становится проблемой для врагов России
— Dmitry Rogozin (@Rogozin) July 29, 2014
"Obama's decision to impose sanctions on the USC - a sure sign that Russian military shipbuilding is becoming a problem for the enemies of Russia," Rogozin tweeted.
Belorussia’s President Alexander Lukashenko agreed to host negotiations on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis in Minsk, after his Ukrainian counterpart proposed the arrangement, according to the press service of the Belarusian leader.
The first group of OSCE observers arrived from Kiev to Russia's Rostov region to monitor the border areas with Ukraine, a government spokesperson of Rostov region told Itar-Tass.
"The OSCE mission observers in special vehicles, including two armored ones crossed the Russian-Ukrainian border through Veselo-Voznesenka checkpoint,” the spokesman said.
“The remaining members, including the mission's chief French citizen Paul Picard and British representative...John Crosby, should arrive at the airport in Rostov-on-Don from Moscow ", Itar-tass reports.
Beginning on Wednesday, the Rostov region will host 13 OSCE members from eight different countries to monitor the border crossings for three months.
The Ukrainian military has taken control over the city of Debalcevo in the Donetsk region, operational headquarters of Ukrainian forces in the east has announced according to ITAR-TASS.
Kiev is ready for a cease-fire “now,” US Secretary of State John Kerry claimed, following a meeting with Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin in Washington. Kerry added that President Petro Poroshenko is also ready to start talks with the militia in the southeast of the country.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in a telephone conversation with US State Secretary John Kerry has urged Washington to influence Kiev to achieve a prompt ceasefire and to start negotiations with southeast Ukraine.
Lavrov stressed the need to return to the accord achieved at Geneva on July 17, including an end to the use of force and to promptly start an open and accountable process of constitutional reform involving all regions of Ukraine.
The two diplomats also agreed to implement the UNSC resolution which demands the provision of an international and independent investigation into the causes of the MH17 disaster and a ceasefire in the region surrounding the crash site.
Good News: 79 orphan children safely transported from #Donetsk to Mariupol today w/facilitation of OSCE SMM
— СММ ОБСЄ в Україні (@OSCE_SMM) July 29, 2014
Evacuation has started in the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk due to artillery shelling with large-caliber missiles, the city council said on its website.
The shelling has already damaged a residential building and an administrative one, while three missiles fell in ponds in the city’s park, the council said.
Media frenzy after US releases 'evidence' that Russia shelled Ukraine @Gayane_RThttp://t.co/qe01IlAFId
— RT (@RT_com) July 29, 2014
Five residents of a retirement home have died in an airstrike targeting the facility carried out by the Ukrainian forces, Interfax reported the city authorities as saying.
“Eight civilian residents have been wounded. Ninety-six missions were carried out by the ambulance over the last 24 hours,” a statement on the city council’s website said.
A home for the elderly in Lugansk was targeted in a shelling attack on Monday, leaving at least five people dead, LPR spokesman Vladimir Inogorodtsev said.
The facility is located in the Artemovksy district of southwestern Lugansk. Local militia members patrolled the damaged building and said that it was shelled by Kiev forces.
WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO
28 July 2014
Washington has agreed to provide almost $7 million in reconstruction aid to parts of eastern Ukraine, including $1 million in new support, the White House said in a statement, commenting on the conversation between US Vice President Joe Biden and Ukrainian Prime Minister Arseniy Yatsenyuk. The White House said the aid is to provide funds to the Red Cross and UN agencies to secure medical assistance, access to drinking water, and small rebuilding projects.
Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers approved a draft resolution bill on the “short-term placement of the UN Human Rights monitoring mission,” Itar-tass reports. Kiev authorizes the Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nations Office, Yuri Klimenko, to conclude the agreement with the world body.
At least 14 people have been killed as a result of intense fighting between the Ukrainian military and anti-Kiev forces in Gorlovka village, Donetsk region in the last 24 hours, local authorities report, citing the regional health department.
"According to the Department of Health of the Donetsk Regional State Administration, 14 people, including 5 children were killed in Gorlovka. There is no information about the dead and wounded in Avdeyevka and Debalcevo," the statement said, noting that Department staff cannot reach Avdeyevka or Debalcevo because of the continued fighting.
The EU will publish an expanded sanctions list of individuals and companies believed to be connected to the Russian decision-makers on Crimea and Ukraine on Wednesday, EU sources told RIA Novosti and ITAR-TASS.
Those added to the list will have their assets frozen in the EU and will be banned from entering its territory, the sources said. They will include companies that the COREPER (the Committee of Permanent Representatives in the European Union) believes to be responsible for the “breach of the territorial integrity of Ukraine.”
The Committee also reportedly agreed on some measures restricting trade and investment flows into Crimea and Sevastopol.
Washington for weeks prevented the UN Security Council from adopting a resolution on sending international observers to the Russia-Ukraine border, which contrasts with public statements made by US officials, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Sergey Ryabkov, was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti.
While formally welcoming the Russian initiative on sending OSCE observers to Russia-Ukraine border checkpoints, the US in reality “for more than two weeks prevented the taking of the decision by the UN Security Council, set forth various conditions, incited Kiev to include in the draft such wording that foredoomed the whole thing to failure,” Ryabkov said.
“Sadly, the actions of Washington often radically contrast with the promises and signals that we receive through the diplomatic channels, as well as in the form of public comments on behalf of the [White House] administration. The gap between words and deeds, it is mind blowing,” the Russian diplomat added.
American, British, French, German, and Italian leaders have agreed by telephone to take further measures against Russia over the Ukraine crisis, the French presidency said, reports Reuters.
The Western leaders voiced regret that Moscow was not putting pressure on Ukraine self-defense to bring them to the negotiating table, or taking steps to ensure control of the Russia-Ukraine border, President Francois Hollande's office said in a statement. They are also keeping an eye on whether Russia was giving direct military support to Ukrainian militia forces, it added.
Ukrainian troops say they have several towns in the Donetsk region back under Kiev’s control, according to Andrey Lysenko, a spokesman for the Ukrainian National Security Council.
“Our military have entered Shakhtyorsk, Torez and Lutugino,” Lysenko said as cited by UNIAN. “Currently, fighting for Pervomaysk and Snezhny is going on. Ukrainian troops and National Guard units have dug in on the outskirts of Gorlovka and are getting ready to liberate it.”
Railway traffic to and from Lugansk in eastern Ukraine has been suspended because of ongoing fighting between Kiev forces and self-defense troops in the region, the press-service for the Ukrainian railroads administration has said.
Armed forces from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic have repelled a major assault of pro-Kiev troops to the east of the city of Shakhtersk. Ukrainian troops “have suffered colossal losses,” claims DPR’s press service. Yet self-defense forces have had to retreat to the nearby village of Dmitrovka to escape heavy mortar shelling of their positions, leaving behind some 20 scouts to monitor the situation on the battlefield. Kiev’s troops are currently shelling the neighbor city of Gorlovka, where citizens are hiding in cellars turned into bomb shelters and inside the local church.
Some 1,129 people have been killed and nearly 3,500 wounded in the Kiev’s operation in eastern Ukraine, according to UN estimates.
27 July 2014
A Kiev official confirmed on Sunday that over 40 soldiers abandoned their military posts and crossed into Russian territory, local Ukrainian media reported.
“Indeed, this took place,” Ukrainian minister of defense, Valery Geletey, told Inter TV channel.
US Secretary of State John Kerry called on Russia to stop supplying arms to eastern Ukraine during a telephone conversation with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
The US State Department said that Kerry urged Russia "to stop the flow of heavy weapons and rocket and artillery fire from Russia into Ukraine, and to begin to contribute to deescalating the conflict.”
Kerry’s message was voiced despite Lavrov’s denial that Russia is sending heavy weapons to eastern Ukraine, further igniting the conflict.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry, in a phone conversation on Sunday, agreed on the importance of ensuring a swift ceasefire in eastern Ukraine, a foreign ministry statement in Moscow said.
Polish journalist Bianca Zalewska has been injured in eastern Ukraine “in the area of anti-terrorist operations (ATO),” the ATO’s press-service said in a statement on Facebook. It claims the journalist was taken to the nearest hospital in the town of Starobilsk in the Lugansk region.
“Given her critical state of health, the patient was immediately evacuated by helicopter to Kharkov for professional medical care,” the statement reads.
Self-defense forces report fighting in the town of Shakhtersk, Donetsk region, RIA Novosti news agency says. The militia claims having seen Ukrainian National Guard APCs entering the town before the fighting started, RIA Novosti reports.
Clashes are raging in the Ukrainian territory near the Russian checkpoint Novoshakhtinsk, Rostov Region, head of Russia’s Customs Service, Rayan Fakurshin, told RT. “The fighting started near Dolzhanskiy [Ukraine's counterpart for Novoshakhtinsk - RT] at about 11:20 Moscow time [ 07:20 GMT]. Our employees have been evacuated. This is a routine for them now. This has been going on a month-and-a-half. If some shells hit our checkpoint, we can learn about it afterward, ” he added.
An early morning Grad rocket attack of Ukrainian troops in Gorlovka, a city near Donetsk, left at least one civilian seriously injured, the militia reported. The two volleys fired by multiple rocket launchers have damaged several residential buildings in the city center and in the nearby village of Korolenko.
Over 1,200 orphans are still located in the war zone in southeastern Ukraine, Russia's children's rights commissioner, Pavel Astakhov, said on his Instagram account.
“Kiev authorities are prohibiting to evacuate and rescue the orphans and don’t do it themselves, making the most vulnerable children hostages to their political ambitions,” he wrote.
26 July 2014
Sixty-one towns in Donetsk region have been left without electricity as a result of heavy fighting between the local militia and the Ukrainian army, local energy company Donetskoblenergo said on its website.
Explosions, gunfire sounding near area east of #Donetsk train station. People take cover in station's underground. Small arms fire visible.
— Christopher Miller (@ChristopherJM) July 26, 2014
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk believes his country’s attempts to oppose Russia and solve the Ukrainian crisis on its own are too ambitious.
“It is obvious to me that we have a chance to adjust Russia’s actions or, at least, make Putin and his team to think if it’s worth it to continue their attack. And the only chance to persuade them to do so are the joint actions of the whole of Europe,” Tusk told Poland’s TVN24 channel. “What is particularly important for Poland – and I dedicate it to our radicals – is not to give in to the temptation to jump on a white horse and rush at Moscow on its own.”
At least 10 people were killed and 20 others injured when the militia’s reconnaissance group was ambushed by Kiev troops near the town of Snezhnoye in Ukraine’s Donetsk Region, a fighter for the self-defense forces wrote on his blog.
“We actually, lost one of the best strike groups” of the Donetsk People’s Republic, he wrote.
A shell hit a high-pressure gas pipeline at the Oktyabrskaya Mine outside the city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine.
There’s a huge pillar of fire coming from the damaged pipe, local media reports.
However, there’s no risk the fire will spread to nearby residential areas. The accident also had no effect on gas supplies to the city of Donetsk.
Артобстрел в Донецке: снарядом уничтожены муниципальная техника и газопровод #Донецкhttp://t.co/nhf8g6h8oTpic.twitter.com/iIREBoaQc2
— Новости Донецка (@donnews777) July 24, 2014
Fifteen civilians have been killed and 60 injured in Lugansk overnight due to massive mortar and artillery shelling of the militia-controlled city by the Ukrainian army, the militia reported. Most of the victims died after shells hit their homes, causing several collapses.
Viktor, a witness from Lugansk told RT that at least ten of those killed were commuters, who were waiting for their early morning bus when they were hit by artillery fire. He added the areas targeted by the shelling had no militia forces whatsoever.
Earlier on Friday, five civilians were killed and two others injured in Ukrainian army shelling.
An explosives plant in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region has caught fire after shelling by Kiev troops, local self-defense forces said on their Twitter account.
Earlier, on July 8, Ukraine’s media outlets reported that the plant had been under militia control, after expelling its military guards.
The number of Ukraine’s refugees housed in temporary shelters in Russia topped 31,000 people, said spokesman for Russia’s emergency ministry Aleksandr Drobyshevsky.
“There are 31,784 people, including 11,728 children staying in 433 shelters,” he said.
The number jumped almost 4,000 from more than 27,000 just a day before, he added.
Self-defense forces in Donetsk region have taken control of the Marinovka border checkpoint, they said on their Twitter account. Earlier Marinovka was reported to be under control of the Kiev troops. No independent confirmation of the claim was immediately available.
The fighting between the Ukrainian army and militias for the border checkpoint occasionally spills out into Russia’s territory. On Friday, more than 45 shells exploded in Russia’s Rostov Region not far from Marinovka and damaged several residential buildings.
Five injured Ukrainian soldiers who were being treated in Russia were transferred to Ukraine early on Saturday. The plane carrying the injured left Rostov-on-Don’s airport at 1:55 a.m. local time and headed to Nikolaev, Ukraine. Four of the wounded are in critical condition.
The EU announced it has introduced asset freezes on several top Russian officials. The list includes the head of Russia's FSB security service, Aleksandr Bortnikov, and foreign intelligence service chief Mikhail Fradkov. The latest round of sanctions consists of 15 Russians or Ukrainians and 18 companies, according to the EU's Official Journal.
25 July 2014
Russia has now amassed around 15,000 troops along the border with Ukraine, the US ambassador to NATO said on Friday, offering a higher figure than one previously cited by the Pentagon.
US Ambassador to NATO Douglas Lute offered the estimate during a security forum in Colorado, saying there were "now up again over about 15,000 Russian troops amassed along the border with Ukraine." (Reuters)
Around 40 shells from fighting over on the Ukrainian side of the border have landed and exploded in the Russian village of Primiusskiy, according to head of the press department of the Rostov Region border service Vasily Malaev.
There has been no information of casualties, though a security source told RIA news agency that one house was damaged by the barrage.
Another three shells landed at the same village on Tuesday.
At least 325 Ukraine’s servicemen have been killed since Kiev authorities launched a military operation in the country’s east, says Andrey Lysenko from the Council of National Safety and Defense. Also, at least 1,232 Ukrainian troops have been injured in the operation, he added.
The UN estimates that about 230,000 Ukraine’s residents have fled their homes amid the crisis in the war-torn country, said Dan McNorton, a UNHCR spokesman.
The number of displaced people within the Ukraine has reached 95,473 while another 130,000 refugees have left for Russia, he added.
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Groysman has been appointed acting prime minister. Yatsenuk announced his resignation after two leading political parties - the far right Svoboda party and the UDAR movement - led by former boxer Vladimir Klitschko said they would pull out of the governing coalition.
24 July 2014
A total of 16 OSCE observers will be stationed on the Russia-Ukraine border for three months at Donetsk and Gukovo posts. The Russian Foreign Ministry stated that it invited the observers even though the condition of ceasefire in eastern Ukraine had not yet been reached. It also added that Ukraine, the US, and Canada tried to block the consensus during talks.
Canada has announced new economic sanctions on a “broad range" of Russian companies and banks for "provocative military activity" in eastern Ukraine.
"The measures we are announcing today include sanctions against a broad range of entities from Russia’s arms industry, as well as from its financial and energy sectors. Our unequivocal aim is to further increase economic and political pressure on the Putin regime," Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a written statement.
The companies include Novatek OAO – Russia's No. 2 natural gas producer – as well as Gazprombank OAO, Russia's third largest bank by assets. The measures also target state development bank Vnesheconombank GK and small-arms producer Kalashnikov.
The Canadian government has also targeted with sanctions the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as well as individuals holding leading positions there.
Artillery fire was heard around Donetsk’s airport in eastern Ukraine after sunset on Wednesday, RIA Novosti reported. The airport is currently under the control of Kiev forces, who are fighting off self-defense militia. Shots were also reported in Donetsk’s Petrovskiy district.
The European Union’s extended sanctions list for Russia and Ukraine will be released before Friday evening, Itar-Tass news agency reported.
The ambassadors of 28 countries of the European Union approved the additions to the "blacklist" at a plenary meeting of the EU Committee on Thursday.
The move will see 15 people and 18 companies sanctioned in addition to the 72 Russian politicians and businessmen that were punished earlier, along with leaders of the self-defense forces in southeastern Ukraine.
Those on the list are banned from entering the EU, and any assets they have in European banks will be frozen.
CNN has called for the release of a local producer, who worked with its crew in eastern Ukraine, who they claim has been abducted by anti-Kiev militants.
The US news channel says that officials from the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic publicly arrested Anton Skiba two days ago, on charges of terrorism and being a government intelligence agent.
He has not been heard from since, apart from a brief phone call, which CNN says was cut off.
"I strongly condemn this incident. Journalists must not become targets just for fulfilling their professional duties," declared Dunja Mijatovic, the representative for media freedom at the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, in response to the incident.
Moscow views as “extremely important” the OSCE Permanent Council decision to send an observation mission to the Donetsk and Gukovo checkpoints on the Russia-Ukraine border, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Grigory Karasin, said.
“We hope that this [decision] will bring greater transparency and confidence to the international community that Russia really is taking concrete steps to reduce tension in the border area; that Russia is ready for transparency and ready to do everything possible to promote a ceasefire,” Karasin is cited as saying by Itar-Tass news agency.
"There’s an unspoken agreement that this group of observers would consist mainly of citizens of Germany, France and Switzerland," he added.
The move follows a declaration on the Ukrainian crisis, which was approved on July 2 in Berlin by foreign ministers of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine, the deputy minister explained.
The number of Ukrainian refugees in Russia topped 27,000 people, said Russia’s Emergency ministry.
“In 408 points of temporary accommodation there are 27,260 people, including 10,356 children,” the official representative of the ministry told Interfax.
The majority of Ukraine’s refugees are in Russia’s Rostov Region and the Republic of Crimea.
Ukrainian soldier Nadezhda Savchenko was involved in the deaths of two Russian journalists – Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin – Russia’s Investigation Committee concluded. One of the directors within the committee, Aleksandr Drymanov, told Kommersant newspaper.
"Her guilt was confirmed via detailed calls made on her mobile phone, which was seized during her arrest in Russia. Also, a map was found on Savchenko, divided into squares, which were hit with artillery and mortar fire,” Drymanov said.
She is now awaiting trial and will remain in custody until the end of August.Both journalists were hit by Ukraine’s army shell while reporting for Rossiya TV channel from Lugansk region in June.
A new law bans media from being in the combat zone in eastern Ukraine, the self-proclaimed defense minister of Donetsk People's Republic, Igor Strelkov, said, adding that the new legislation is meant to protect members of the press. “From now on journalists are not allowed to take pictures, video, audio or be in the combat zone, or near a combat zone,” RIA Novosti quoted DNR’s press service as saying.
Strelkov added that the measure is temporary and that special accreditations for the media are being considered, which would grant journalists full access to the combat zone.
23 July 2014
Explosions are being heard around Donetsk’s airpot and train station, RIA Novosti reported, adding that artillery is likely being used. The Ukrainian army has a heavy presence around airport areas, where it is fighting against self-defense forces.
The Ukrainian army reportedly shelled an apartment building in Donetsk which had civilians inside, according to a YouTube video which shows a destroyed residence in the building.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in its latest statement has described the hostilities going on in eastern Ukraine as “non-international armed conflict.”
“We do not say 'civil war' because it’s not a legal term, but there’s actually no difference,” a representative of the organization told ITAR-TASS.
The ICRC has reminded the opposing sides in Ukraine that “attacks may be directed only against military objectives” and that the civilian population has to be protected.
"These rules and principles apply to all parties to the non-international armed conflict in Ukraine, and impose restrictions on the means and methods of warfare that they may use," ICRC director of operations Dominik Stilhart said.
Two Ukrainian military fighter jets have been shot down in the east of the country by anti-government forces, according to Ukraine’s Defense Ministry, quoted by Reuters. The Sukhoi 25 planes were shot down at 13.30 local time on Wednesday around Savur Mogila. A spokesman for the Defense Ministry, Aleksey Dmitrashovsky says the aircrafts were carrying up to two crew members each. He also added that there is currently no information concerning the fate of those crew members.
Self-defense forces of the People’s Republic of Donetsk (DPR) have said they have taken control of two villages on the Ukrainian border with Russia, Novorossia news agency reports. Igor Strelkov, defense minister for the self-proclaimed republic, said that fighting between Kiev troops and the militia is continuing near Dubrovka, Donetsk region.
Here's the recap of President Obama's call with Prime Minister Rutte of the Netherlands on the situation in Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/3zvKjvUFIm
— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 22, 2014
22 July 2014
German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier believes that Russia has not done enough to defuse the conflict in eastern Ukraine. He told reporters in Brussels that Europe is ready to put more pressure on those who are unwilling to cooperate in settling the crisis.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko spoke against the introduction of martial law on Tuesday night, according to the government’s press service, stressing serious implications for the whole country.
Poroshenko added that support from international financial institutions would no longer be possible if martial law was introduced.
“Martial law – it is a situation in which there is the other side. And the party we are fighting has the appropriate rights. It can be supported, including by other states, it is under the protection of international law,” he said.
The Ukrainian army has reportedly entered the cities of Severodonetsk and Lisichansk in the Lugansk region and taken control of main administrative buildings in both cities. Three columns of armored vehicles entered the towns from opposite directions, after heavy shelling of the area last night. Self-defense forces have reportedly withdrawn from the area, leaving behind several covering teams. Ukrainian army and national guards units are conducting a flushing-out operation to establish full control of the area.
The Ukrainian parliament has signed into law a bill on a partial military draft. It was proposed by President Poroshenko, Itar-Tass reports. The law will allow 15 new military units to join the Ukrainian troops.
It’s the third partial military draft Ukraine has seen in a few months.
The bill was criticized by a member of Party of the Regions, Nikolay Levchenko.
“It looks like Poroshenko’s peace plan comes down to continuing war. Is this what the 15 clauses of the plan are all about?” he said.
Levchenko’s words provoked a scuffle between opposing groups in the Ukrainian parliament. The MP was eventually expelled from the session.
Five civilians have died and 16 have been injured over the last 24 hours following attacks on Lugansk, according to the city council website.
There were 137 ambulance alerts, 16 of them concerned gunshot wounds and traumas among the civilian population, the statement also read.
Collapsed railway bridge near Donetsk.
The Ukrainian government failed to provide the needed protection and assistance to tens of thousands of Ukrainian citizens fleeing their homes due to the ongoing fighting between Kiev and the self-defense forces, Human Rights Watch said in a letter addressed to President Petro Poroshenko.
"All displaced people said they received little to no help from the government when they were fleeing from armed conflict areas or when they have sought to secure housing, food, clothing, and other essential items, as well as access to social services," the letter said. "Most also said that they did not receive any information about agencies or governmental bodies they could turn to for help.”
21 July 2014
The US is against France’s plan to sell Mistral helicopter carriers to Russia in light of the Ukrainian crisis, Reuters quoted US senior administration official as saying on Monday.
France’s decision on whether or not to deliver the second Mistral helicopter carrier to Russia depends on Moscow’s “attitude,” French President Francois Hollande said on Monday.
Hollande added that the first carrier will be completed and delivered to Russia in October as planned.
"For the time being, a level of sanctions has not been decided on that would prevent this delivery," Hollande said.
"Does that mean that the rest of the contract - the second Mistral - can be carried through? That depends on Russia's attitude," Hollande added.
Heavy fighting at Donetsk Train Station, eastern Ukraine, left holes in the buildings, smashed windows and panicked residents.
"People are dying, someone's shooting. The shell fragments are flying, it's scary, there are blasts," Anastasiya Malih, local resident told Ruptly. She added that complete panic is overwhelming the people in Donetsk.
Kiev says it is not responsible for fighting in Donetsk but there is "small self-organised group who are fighting with the terrorists." FFS
— Shaun Walker (@shaunwalker7) July 21, 2014
Ukrainian special forces have begun the clean-up operation in the town of Dzerzhinsk, according to the Ukrainian Defense Minister Valery Geletey.
“The Ukrainian forces have set up a check-point in the Gorlovka area and freed the Peski community, stopping the communication with the village of Karlovka in the Donetsk Region,” the statement said.
Apart from that, the Ukrainian army approached the town of Lisichansk in the Lugansk Region, the minister added.
Spanish RT correspondent Francisco Guaita, who is in Donetsk, has tweeted a picture of "another plume of smoke several kilometers west of the airport" and added that heavy artillery fire could be heard.
Otra columna de humo a varios kilometros al oeste del aeropuerto. Se escucha artileria pesada #Donetskpic.twitter.com/d5uiYZ3ws2
— Francisco Guaita (@Guaitafran) July 21, 2014
The UK has warned that the Russian economy could face sector-targeted sanctions unless there is an “immediate response [not only] to the crash, but also the very directly-related issues around instability in eastern Ukraine.”
"We should be discussing going further, sectoral measures, tier three," a spokesman for British Prime Minister David Cameron told journalists.
The fighting in east Ukraine costs the government over $130 million a month, the country’s Finance Minister Aleksandr Shlapak stated, as quoted by Reuters.
Kiev had to receive additional funds to continue “the anti-terrorist campaign,” he added.
The country’s GDP is currently falling by 6.5 percent a year. The previous government forecast was 3 percent.
RT @RuptlyNewsroom: our stringer confirms shelling in #Donetsk by #Kiev forces - footage expected later
— Ruptly (@Ruptly) July 21, 2014
Ukrainian troops shell swimming beach near Avdeevka, on the outskirts of the city of Donetsk.
Ukrainian troops equipped with tanks and armored vehicles are making an attempt to break into Donetsk, a city of approximately 950,000 people, an official of the rebels' self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic, Sergey Kavtaradze, informed Reuters.
The fighting is ongoing in several spots simultaneously. The heaviest fire is heard near the Donetsk Airport, currently held by pro-Kiev forces and next to the main railway station, which suffered an airstrike this morning. The city is being shelled with heavy artillery and unguided missiles of multiple launch rocket systems.
“The active phase of the anti-terrorist operation is continuing. We are not about to announce any troop movements,” the spokesman for Kiev's military operations in eastern Ukraine, Vladyslav Seleznyov, announced on Monday.
20 July 2014
The search zone has been expanded to 50 sq km, rescue workers at the MH17 crash site have told RIA Novosti. Earlier the search zone was 35 km.
Residents of a village in the Lvov Region in western Ukraine have blocked a busy highway in the region that leads to the Ukrainian-Hungarian border.
The protesters, mainly women, were demanding that their relatives who were injured in Ukraine's military operation against the self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine be removed from the combat zone.
Под Львовом матери военнослужащих перекрыли трассу Киев-Чоп pic.twitter.com/tBVM4vB2ON
— ОПОЛЧЕНЕЦ (@NOVORUSSIA2015) July 20, 2014
Thirteen people have been injured over the weekend in the shelling of Lugansk Region, the press service of the Lugansk City Council reported. According to the statement, 18 residential houses - one high-rise building among them - were damaged on July 19.
On July 20, the old down town was hit by artillery fire, which damaged more residential buildings, as well as a school and university dormitory buildings.
The report added that over a dozen pieces of unexploded ammunition were found in the city.
The situation in Donetsk, eastern Ukraine remains tense, with residents reporting explosions in three districts, according to the city’s mayoral office.
The administration adds though that there have not been any disruptions in the work of public transport and utilities.
Another 27 bodies of passengers have been found, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Groysman said. A total 223 bodies have so far been recovered.
19 July 2014
UK Prime Minister David Cameron wrote in The Sunday Times newspaper that if it were proven that anti-Kiev forces were behind the downing of a Malaysian jet, Russia would bear responsibility for their action.
"If this is the case then we must be clear what it means: this is a direct result of Russia destabilizing a sovereign state, violating its territorial integrity, backing thuggish militias and training and arming them," he wrote.
He also urged his European colleagues to build a common front against Moscow.
"It is time to make our power, influence and resources count. Our economies are strong and growing in strength...And yet we sometimes behave as if we need Russia more than Russia needs us."
Close to 100 protesters of French, Ukrainian and Russian descent gathered in close proximity to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Saturday. The protesters waved flags of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and chanted slogans including "Freedom for Donbass" and "We don't forget Odessa."
Alain Benajam, part of the Voltaire Network, joined the protest and compared Kiev's military operation in the country's east to Israel's current operations in Gaza.
Fierce fighting is raging near the airport and Oktyabrsky region in Donetsk city, Anastasia from the local militia HQ told RT on the phone.The Oktyabrsky region “is being shelled by tanks at the moment,” she stated.
On Friday the local militia bombed a communications tower near the airport setting ablaze the ammunition warehouse of the Ukrainian army, she added.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has refused to include south-eastern militia in the peace negotiations which are aimed at resolving the conflict in the country, according to his press-service.
Explaining his decision at the meeting with Netherlands’ Foreign Minister Frans Timmermans in Kiev, Poroshenko said the militia forces are to blame for the MH17 flight crash that happened on Thursday when the Malaysia airline’s plane was downed near Donetsk, resulting in 298 deaths.
"Speaking about the settlement of the conflict in the Donbas, Poroshenko noted that those who are related to a terrorist attack cannot be a party in the negotiations. Their crime should be investigated in international courts," said the press service.
250 civilians have been killed and 850 more wounded in June and July in Lugansk region, eastern Ukraine, according to a report made by the special mission of OSCE in Ukraine and published on Saturday.
"The doctors said that in June and July alone there were 250 killed and 850 wounded in the Luhansk region. The doctors also informed that on 16 July alone three persons were killed and 30 were wounded in Luhansk city."
The local doctors added that the number of people killed by booby traps and mines is increasing, according to the OSCE.
Kiev armed forces are concentrating on Donetsk’s western borders preparing for an assault on the city, representative of DPR self-defense forces told RIA Novosti.
The representative also told the agency that despite a temporary truce over the MH17 flight incident, the fighting continues to the south of the city, as well as other areas. He said the anti-Kiev forces also engaged in fighting near Donetsk airport where there is a large concentration of Kiev forces.
The representative added that villages surrounding the airport suffered civilian loses, as Ukrainian tanks and four Grad rockets shelled the villages of Peski, Tonenkoe, and Andreevka. After the shelling, Ukrainian forces took the communities of Severnoe and Tonenkoe by deploying four tanks in each of the villages.
US President Barack Obama is once again pressuring his European allies to impose more sanctions on Russia, as he spoke to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister David Cameron on the phone.
"While agreeing to continue efforts to find a diplomatic solution to the current crisis, they reaffirmed their determination to remain in close contact as they consider what additional actions may be required," the White House said of Obama's call with Merkel.
"They emphasized that Russia bears a clear responsibility to deny separatists in eastern Ukraine continued access to heavy weapons and other support from inside Russia," it said.
In their separate call, Obama and Cameron "reiterated the need to take further action if Russia continues to fail to take ... steps" to de-escalate the Ukraine conflict, the White House said.
18 July 2014
President Barack Obama called for a cease-fire between Ukraine and pro-Russian separatists in the east of Ukraine to allow a complete investigation into the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17.
“We have increasing confidence” that the Malaysian plane was shot down by a surface-to-air missile that was launched from rebel-controlled territory, Obama said. He also confirmed that at least one American, Quinn Lucas Shanzmen, was killed on board the plane.
The crash “underscores that it is time for peace and security to be restored in Ukraine,” Obama said in a statement on Friday. “This should snap everybody’s head to attention and make sure we don’t have time for propaganda and we don’t have time for games.”
The Russian Defense Ministry has said that neither the Buk missile defense system, nor any other military equipment, has crossed the Russian border into Ukraine.
Such border crossings “can’t be performed in secrecy,” the official representative for the Russian Defense Ministry told journalists in Moscow.
Earlier, the Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) alleged that it has proof the self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine received a Buk anti-aircraft missile system with a crew from Russia.
Moscow believes that America is targeting it with sanctions “because the events in Ukraine have not developed the way Washington scripted them,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Thursday.
“The outrageous and groundless desire to blame Russia for the civil war in a neighboring country, which was caused by a deep internal crisis and already resulted in the loss of many lives, proves that the US and its clients in Kiev have failed to pacify the wide public dissent,”the ministry said.
Moscow said Washington is cynical in attempting to dodge responsibility for the bloodshed perpetrated by the Ukrainian troops in the east of the country, which the US is de facto encouraging.
At least 15 have been killed and 53 wounded as the city of Lugansk has come under shelling attack. The city’s center and civilian areas have been targeted leaving areas in ruins.
"Today intense bombardment of Lugansk has continued. Shells are falling in almost all districts of the city,” the administration said in a statement.
Later on Friday, the Health Ministry of the Lugansk People’s Republic confirmed that 15 people were killed in the shelling and another 53 were injured.
17 July 2014
The Obama administration has widened the list of sanctions unilaterally targeting individuals as well as financial institutions and defense companies which the US believes are involved in destabilizing the situation in Ukraine.
The US has moved to impose tougher sanctions against Russia over the tense situation in Ukraine. The widened set of restrictions have been placed on the country's largest oil producer Rosneft and major bank Vnesheconombank among others.
Kiev has accused Russia of downing its Su-25 fighter jet on June 16. Andrey Lysenko, spokesman of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council, said a Russian military jet shot down a plane that was fulfilling a military operation over the east of Ukraine at 19:00 local time. Earlier Kiev blamed the attack on self-defense forces.
This is not the first accusation of Russia’s direct military involvement in the conflict. Russia’s Defense Ministry declined to comment.
On Wednesday, self-defense forces claimed they had shot down two of the Ukrainian Air Force Su-25 fighter jets.
Imposing sanctions on Russia and blaming it for destabilizing Ukraine contradicts US national interests, President Putin said at the BRICS summit in Brazil, emphasizing that declared support of Ukrainians should not be limited to the country’s oligarchs.
“We aren’t the ones introducing sanctions, you should ask them,” Putin said.
“But as for sanctions, they usually have a boomerang effect, and without a doubt will force US-Russian relations into a corner,” he elaborated. “This is a serious blow to our relationship. And it undermines the long term security interests of the US State and its people.”
Putin said that it is “regrettable” that “our partners” have chosen to impose new sanctions, but Russia“will not close doors to negotiations.”
“We're open to finding ways out of this situation,” Putin said. “I really hope that common sense and the willingness to resolve all issues through peaceful diplomatic means will prevail.”
Fifteen injured Ukrainian servicemen have been taken to hospitals in the city of Gukovo, Russia's Rostov region, Itar-Tass reports citing the head of the FSB regional border press service, Vasily Malayev.
The officer said that members of the State Border Service of Ukraine “arrived at the state border line waving a white flag, asking for medical care, treatment of wounded soldiers.”
“There were 15 people. They've been delivered to health facilities of Gukovo where they received the necessary medical care, " said Malayev.
16 July 2014
The OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) in Ukraine has arrived to Russia’s Rostov Region to study a situation at the Russian-Ukrainian border. The group will visit the Donetsk and Gukovo checkpoints, the OSCE’s press service said. The assessment group is to meet with regional authorities and remain in the area until July 19.
Ukrainian troops have resumed flights of military aircraft to support the crackdown in the east of the country, a spokesman for the national security service reported.
The flights were suspended on Tuesday after the downing of a transport plane in Lugansk Region.
The resumption was confirmed by militia sources, which said airstrikes were being delivered near Saur-Mogila Hill in Donetsk region, a place of intensive fighting between the militias and Kiev loyalists.
Ukraine has deployed several Grad multiple rocket launchers in the village of Elenovka, 10km from the city of Donetsk, RIA Novosti reported.
Military attachés from 11 countries have visited the southern Russian city of Donetsk, which was hit by artillery shells from Kiev troops on Sunday. One person was killed and two more were injured in the attack.
Among the countries to send representatives were China, the US, Italy, Germany and France.
“I am personally convinced how important it is to have an OSCE mission that screens the border. That supports, hopefully, also a ceasefire finally," Brigadier General Rainer Shvalb, German military attaché, told Ruptly.
In the meantime, Bruce H. McClintock, a military attaché from the US, said that only “a handful” of refugees from eastern Ukraine have crossed Russian borders.
“So here at this border crossing, what I've seen personally is a small number of people that are crossing from Ukraine into Russia,” he said. “But the numbers are a handful of people at this point.”
Two shells fired from Ukraine hit near the Russian border checkpoint Kuibyshevo on Wednesday morning, a spokesman for the regional customs service reported. The personnel of the checkpoint were evacuated due to the incident. Evacuations were also ordered at Novoshakhtinsk overnight, after intensive mortar fire was herd across the border in Ukraine.
President Barack Obama and German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a telephone conversation have agreed that Moscow hasn't taken steps to defuse tensions in Ukraine, and will now work together to impose new economic hardships on Russia.
"The President and the Chancellor reaffirmed their commitment to work together with other allies to ensure that Europe and the United States remain closely coordinated on measures to impose costs on Russia, as necessary, as well as to continue to support Ukraine's long-term stability and prosperity," the White House said.
15 July 2014
Ukrainian Army units are leaving earlier captured positions near Lugansk in the east of the country, the press-service for the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk has said, reports Itar-Tass. The troops have withdrawn from the city of Krasnodon, Aleksandrovka and Schastie, the press-service stated, adding that the move is not connected to the self-defense troops’ activities.
The OSCE has confirmed that it accepted Russia's invitation to send an assessment mission to the Russian-Ukrainian border on 16 July.
"The organization will send an assessment mission, consisting of three OSCE Secretariat representatives, to the Donetsk and Gukovo points on the Russian-Ukrainian border," the OSCE press-service told Interfax news agency on Tuesday.
Since the beginning of Kiev’s military operation in eastern Ukraine, 258 troops have been killed, 922 wounded and 45 taken captives, according to the country’s National Security and Defense Service (SNBO).
The OSCE Chairperson-in-Office and Swiss Foreign Minister; Didier Burkhalter has engaged in telephone diplomacy with Ukrainian and the Russian Foreign Ministers where he reiterated the OSCE’s support in various ongoing de-escalation efforts in Ukraine.
“Burkhalter...stressed the importance and urgency of talks of the trilateral contact group with leaders of illegally armed groups in the eastern region of Ukraine in order to prepare the ground for discussions regarding a ceasefire,” the organization said in a statement.
Burkhalter also emphasized that the OSCE had been working towards setting up a videoconference in this framework for days and wanted both countries to support it, as he said that the “OSCE is ready to monitor a ceasefire as soon as a political agreement is reached.”
14 July 2014
Nearly 600 police officers in Donetsk were dismissed from their posts after the "first stage of checking for the oath of allegiance and service to Ukraine,” said Ukrainian Interior Minister Arseny Avakov, Itar-tass reports.
"585 certified police officers were fired,” Avakov said, adding that appropriate criminal proceedings have been opened against the individuals, who allegedly supported the self-defense forces of the DPR. He added that another 242 are still being investigated.
Woman has been heavily injured during bombing of Lugansk, Child survived. Blood on stroller #Ukrainepic.twitter.com/HTZXz3N4gL
— Nicolaj Gericke (@Nicolaj_Gericke) July 14, 2014
The crew of a Ukrainian Antonov An-26, which was “shot down while fulfilling tasks as part of the active part of the anti-terrorist operation” has established contact with the General Staff, Ukrainian Defense Minister Valery Geletei reported to President Petro Poroshenko.
A search and rescue operation is currently under way to find the crew and take them to territory controlled by the Ukrainian military, a statement on the Ukrainian president’s website says.
The OSCE has received Moscow’s proposal to send the European security watchdog’s monitors to two of Russia’s border checkpoints in Ukraine. Consultations on the issue have already started, the organization’s office in Switzerland said, RIA Novosti reported.
Russia has been building up its forces again along the Ukrainian border and now has an estimated 10,000-12,000 troops in the area, a NATO military officer said on Monday.
Russia withdrew most of the 40,000 troops it had close to the border earlier this year, reducing them to fewer than 1,000 by mid-June. But since then, it has been building up its forces again, the officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"Our current assessment is that between 10,000 and 12,000 troops are now in the area ... In the last week alone, we have seen several units moving into the border region," the officer said. (Reuters)
Russia has invited OSCE monitors to two of its border checkpoints with Ukraine, at Donetsk and Gukovo, to show good will, the Foreign Ministry said in a statement. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov sent a letter on the matter Monday to the European security watchdog’s Chairman-in-Office, Didier Burkhalte. Moscow also submitted a draft resolution to the OSCE Standing Committee on the deployment of observers.
“We believe that this step will help to create favorable conditions for a ceasefire and starting an inclusive and transparent dialogue in Ukraine in compliance with the Geneva statement of April 17 and the Berlin declaration of July 2," the ministry said.
Self-defense forces of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic have downed two Ukrainian jets, Aleksey Toporov, press secretary of LPR’s Defense Ministry, told RT. An Su-25 fighter jet was downed near the town of Krasnodon, Toporov said. He said he could not yet give details on the second jet, which he said was downed near the town of Lisichyansk.
Self-defense fighters have attacked and destroyed a convoy supplying Kiev’s troops, a source in the self-defense forces’ leadership told the RIA Novosti news agency.
“The convoy was moving along the border with Russia, near the town of Snezhnoe, where the adversary is trying to cut us off from the border,” the source said. “We shelled the convoy, when it was near the villages of Marinovka and Kozhevnya. The enemy’s losses are being estimated.”
13 July 2014
Nine people were killed and six others injured in a shooting by the Ukrainian army near Trudovskaya coal mine in Donetsk on Saturday, the city council said in a statement on its website, adding that previous reports of 12 people killed are wrong. The city's administrators expressed their condolences to the victims' families and said the city would pay for the funerals.
There have been reports of more shooting in Donetsk over the weekend, but the city's utilities and public transport are said to be functioning as normal.
Ukrainian troops fired on the town of Krasnogorovka in the Donetsk region on Sunday, according to the official Twitter account for the People’s Republic of Donetsk. A school and multiple apartment blocks were damaged and “there were many casualties,” it said.
Commenting on Sunday’s tragedy in the Rostov region, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry claimed that it has never shelled Russian territory, UNN news agency reported, citing the body’s press service. Moscow’s statements on the situation, the ministry said, were “hasty and unfounded.”
Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel have agreed that the Ukrainian crisis is worsening and stressed the necessity to resume the work of the international Contact Group on Ukraine. The two leaders believe an immediate ceasefire is necessary, as well as the exchange of captives between the conflicting sides, Putin’s press secretary, Dmitry Peskov, said.
Putin and Merkel met in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Sunday, where they arrived to watch the World Cup final.
Putin voiced extreme concern over the Ukrainian military's offensive and called such actions unacceptable, according to Peskov. Putin specifically referred to cases of Ukrainian shells reaching Russian territory.
The comment comes after an artillery shell from Ukraine hit a private house in Russia’s southern Rostov region, killing one person and injuring two others.
Fierce fighting between Ukrainian troops and local militia forces started in the suburbs of the eastern city of Lugansk, said the head of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic's self-defense forces, Igor Strelkov, as quoted by RIA Novosti.
“The enemy has thrown in about 70 tanks consisting of two compact armored groups. There is unconfirmed information that a helicopter with a SWAT team landed in the city,” Strelkov said.
He added that columns of Ukrainian troops are heading to Donetsk from the south and west.
A Ukrainian military plane has violated Russian airspace, said a reporter from the Russian ‘Zvezda’ TV-channel, who was on duty in Russia’s southern town of Donetsk. “During filming, and as the Investigating Committee was working, a Ukrainian plane appeared in the sky above the suburbs of Donetsk, entering Russian territory, and carried out an airstrike on Ukrainian territory,” Maxim Gritsenko told ITAR-TASS. He added that people were scared, and they scattered.
A tent camp for Ukrainian refugees, designed for 500 people, will be moved as far as 20 km from the Russian-Ukrainian border, a representative of the regional government told ITAR-TASS on Sunday. Speaking about a meeting of the Emergency Situations Committee, Aleksandr Titov said: “A decision has been made to move the temporary housing area deeper into Russia’s territory.” Earlier today, a man was killed and two women were injured, as an artillery shell from Ukraine hit a private house in the Rostov region, where the small border town of Donetsk (not the Ukrainian city) is located.
Ukrainian troops deny earlier reports by self-defense forces, claiming they downed a Ukrainian MI-24 military helicopter near the village of Kozhevnya.
“All aircrafts – planes and helicopters – engaged in the operation, are in working condition. None of them have been shot down over the last three days,” Andrey Lysenko, spokesman at the information center for Ukraine’s Security and Defense Council, told RIA Novosti.
12 July 2014
The possibility of Russian and Ukrainian presidents meeting at the World Cup final in Rio de Janeiro on July 13 "cannot be ruled out," Vladimir Putin's spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, said on Saturday.
State leaders – Vladimir Putin and Petro Poroshenko among them – will be present at the World Cup final match. "There will be a separate room at the stadium for the leaders, so the possibility [of a meeting] can of course not be ruled out," Peskov said.
The spokesman added that no separate meeting with the Ukrainian president has been planned. He did, however, confirm Putin's talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, saying the situation in Ukraine will be discussed.
More than 15 suspects – all officers of the Ukrainian military – are being investigated over the killing of civilians in eastern Ukraine, Itar-Tass quoted Russia's Investigative Committee spokesperson, Vladimir Markin, as saying.
One of the suspects is battalion commander Col. Malamen, who is thought to have personally ordered troops to shoot at civilians. The military opened fire on a vehicle carrying journalists on June 30, killing a cameraman for Russia's Channel One, Anatoly Klyan.
Russian TV channels have once again been turned off in Kramatorsk, Slavyansk, Mariupol, and the south of Odessa region in eastern Ukraine, the state media watchdog reported after the army took control of the area. All Ukrainian TV channels have been turned back on.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel asked Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko during a telephone conversation on Thursday to keep a “sense of proportion” when dealing with eastern Ukraine’s self-defense forces, Reuters quoted a German government spokesman as saying.
"The Chancellor urged President Poroshenko to maintain a sense of proportion in his legitimate actions against the separatists and to protect the civilian population," German government spokesman Steffen Seibert said in a statement. "Both agreed that talks of the contact group ... are urgently needed now in order to begin the implementation of Poroshenko's peace plan and a mutual ceasefire," he said.
11 July 2014
Russian journalists came under mortar fire in Lugansk, where the Ukrainian military targeted a local registration and enlistment office, which they believe is being used by the opposition.
According to Rossiyskaya Gazeta newspaper, journalist Yury Snegiryov and TV reporters were able to leave the area by car. Snegiryov was later driven away by a motorcyclist.
Russia has submitted “the elements” of a future resolution on Ukraine to the United Nations Security Council, Russia’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Vitaly Churkin, told journalists on Friday.
“We have shared the elements which we hope will lay down the foundation for the UN Security Council resolution on Ukraine,” Churkin said.
The Russian delegation has asked its Security Council colleagues to react to the proposal by 10am New York time on Monday.
Ukrainian military planes bombed the town of Dzerzhinsk in the Donetsk region, Donetsk People’s Republic headquarters told Ria Novosti on Friday. The military hit a cemetery, fragments hit a transformer pillar and a gas pipeline - the town is partially without electricity. There have been no reports of injuries so far in the town, which is a stronghold and mustering point for the self-defense forces.
At least 30 Ukrainian military were killed in shellfire on their convoy near Zelenopolye settlement in the Lugansk region on Friday morning, said the adviser to the Minister of Internal Affairs. As Donetsk People’s Republic headquarters report, a Ukrainian mechanized infantry brigade was attacked by a 'Grad' unit, and “was defeated.” The Defense Ministry press service confirms the deaths of only 19 soldiers.
Self-defense forces downed a military aircraft on Friday near the town of Perevalsk, in the eastern Ukaine’s Lugansk region. It was supposedly an attack plane, a spokesperson for the Lugansk People's Republic said.
Six Ukrainian military and one border guard were killed, and five soldiers were injured in the intensifying clashes along the Russian-Ukrainian border, the Ukrainian State Border Service announced. According to the statement, “the epicenter of the tense standoff reached the state border line today.”
Staff at the Russian ‘Gukovo’ border checkpoint were evacuated twice on Friday because of shooting and shell bursts on Ukrainian territory, said Russia’s Southern Customs Administration's spokesman. “At the moment the employees have once again been removed as far as nearly one kilometer away,” he added. The checkpoint is closed, and the bus terminal building, where the customs officers were operating, was damaged in previous Ukrainian shelling.
The area near the military facilities of Lugansk self-defense forces, eastern Ukraine, is being shelled, local witnesses told ITAR TASS.
Smoke is reportedly seen in the area and the ambulances have already headed to the scene. Lugansk self-defense troops control the area and warn local residents of the danger of shelling.
Renewed violence is being reported in eastern Ukraine. Fighting has broken out around Donetsk airport, which is controlled by government forces. The premises is being blocked by local militia.
Gunfire and explosions were heard in the city and in the nearby small town of Seversk, which was reportedly targeted by airstrikes.
RT also received reports of heavy shelling in a mining area in the Lugansk region, not far from the Russian border. A bus transporting miners to work reportedly came under fire.
“We work at the same mine, they were my colleagues, they were going to work on the bus when it was shelled by the Ukrainian army. Four people died. And the shelling continues now,” one of the miners, Vadim, told RT.
“They bombed a school, a kindergarden. My brother’s family was walking past as the apartment block was bombed, his wife was wounded in front of their child. There was blood everywhere. Everyone feels lost and scared,” he added.
Other accounts described the Ukrainian army firing at residential houses in the Kamennobrodskiy district of the Lugansk region, Itar-Tass quoted eyewitnesses as saying.
Shelling has also been reported in a residential area of Karlovka village in the Donetsk region.
The US is ready to consider funding reconstruction projects in the Donbass region in eastern Ukraine, US Vice President Joe Biden told Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko during a telephone conversation on Thursday, according to the president’s website.
Ukraine is ready for a bilateral ceasefire, the country’s President Petro Poroshenko told German Chancellor Angela Merkel in a telephone conversation on Thursday, according to a statement posted on the president’s website.
The president requested monitoring and verification of the ceasefire’s implementation on both sides and the beginning of unconditional negotiations.
10 July 2014
In a phone call between Germany, France and Russia, President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Merkel backed Vladimir Putin by calling for a new ceasefire in eastern Ukraine. They said it was important to reach a political solution as soon as possible.
The three leaders have called for negotiations between the International Contact Group and the opposition in eastern Ukraine. Merkel also urged Russia to use its influence to persuade the eastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions to take part in a meeting with the International Contact Group, the German government's press service said.
Hollande and Merkel called on Putin to "exert all necessary pressure" on the opposition and to take "the concrete measures required to control the Russia-Ukraine border," Hollande's office said in a statement.
The “Donetsk” Multilateral Automobile Border Crossing Point (MAPP) has come under fire for the second time in 24 hours, chief press officer of the southern customs department RayanFarukshin told the Itar-Tass news agency.
"Just several minutes ago, military action started from the side of the Ukrainian “Izvarino” checkpoint,” he said. Farukshin added that border security stuff had not been evacuated.
The country’s deputy health minister, Vasily Lazoryshynets, has said 478 civilians, including seven children, have been killed in Kiev’s military crackdown on the eastern regions of Ukraine. However, this information was denied by the Ukrainian Ministry of Health. The ministry reduced the figure on the civilian death toll, saying that the deputy minister “only provided the latest statistics on the overall mortality level.” However, they did not provide any other figure.
Scores of people are queuing in front of banks and railway ticket counters in Donetsk on Thursday, trying to withdraw money and buy tickets for destinations outside the Donbass region.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has expressed “its strong protest” over Ukrainian troops shelling Russia’s Gukovo checkpoint at the borderline between the two countries.
“The Russian side expresses strong protest to the Ukrainian side and demands the cessation of bombardments on Russian territory,” the statement says, adding that "if such incidents are repeated, all responsibility for their consequences will lie with the Kiev authorities."
The Ukrainian National Council for TV and Radio Broadcasting has ordered broadcasting of pro-Russian TV programs be stopped in the next 24 hours. Its member, Olga Gerasimyuk, said that “Ukrainian channels and providers are given 24 hours; otherwise they will be shut down and will be called to account.”
Three Ukrainian soldiers have been killed and 27 wounded in clashes with the self-defense forces in the east of the country in the past 24 hours, the military said on Thursday. “The situation in the region remains tense,” according to the press-center of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine. There have also been cases of road mining, both of highways and dirt roads, which the Kiev forces use.
Fighting has been reported in eastern Ukraine near the ‘Donetsk’ checkpoint in Rostov Region, southwestern Russia, the press service of the Russian Southern Customs Service reported. The customs officers have been evacuated.
Sanctions against Russia are stupid, believes Marine Le Pen, the president of the French far-right National Front.
“These sanctions are stupid, and have contributed to adding fuel to the fire, created a hostile environment against Russia,” said the French politician at a press conference.
Le Pen believes that Russia is one of those countries which “preserves Ukraine's sovereignty and avoids the degradation of this situation to a civil war.”
“The best way to stop this is to put everyone around the table,” she said, adding that Western countries “should not treat Russia with contempt,” because Russia is “a big regional player.”
09 July 2014
The EU is implementing sanctions against 11 more individuals for their involvement in eastern Ukrainian tensions, AP quoted an EU source as saying. The source added that the sanctions will be made official by the end of this week. The names of the affected individuals have not yet been disclosed.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande spoke by phone with Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Wednesday, with the aim of restarting talks with militia on a ceasefire, Merkel's spokesman said.
"The Chancellor expressed her hope that talks of the contact group will finally commence again with participation from the separatists in order to discuss a mutual ceasefire and the implementation of the peace plan," Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said in a statement.
Seibert added that Merkel and Hollande had called on Russia to use its influence over the self-defence forces to stop weapons and fighters flowing into Ukraine from Russia. (Reuters)
Two livestock animals were hurt in Russia’s Rostov Region after a shell from the Ukrainian side hit a farm pasture some 800 meters inside Russian territory, border guards told RIA Novosti. The shell apparently came amid a battle underway in Ukraine near the Marinovka border checkpoint.
It’s the latest in a series of incidents, in which shells have been fired into Russia from war-torn Ukraine.
08 July 2014
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has agreed to negotiate with the region’s population over the fate of eastern Ukraine, a statement on his website says.
“President Petro Poroshenko has said that he is ready for negotiations over the future fate of Donbas with everyone who really represents the people of the region and is prepared for political dialogue,” the statement reads.
Several dozen armed people have seized the ground floor of a large hospital in Donetsk Region, the local administration said on its website. It was not immediately clear who those people were and what they wanted.
Kiev will not declare a new ceasefire in eastern Ukraine unless militias lay down all arms, new Ukrainian Defense Minister Valeriy Geletey said.
“The president of Ukraine stated it in definitive terms. Now any negotiation is only possible after the militants lay down all arms,” he said.
A passenger bus in the eastern Ukrainian city of Lugansk has been hit by artillery fire, reported the press service of Lugansk city council. Two people reportedly died in the attack.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko confirmed the plan to “liberate” the eastern cities of Lugansk and Donetsk, currently under the control of self-defense forces, UNIAN news agency cited Deputy Secretary of the National Security Council Mikhail Koval as saying.
US President Barack Obama and his French counterpart Francois Hollande agreed that Europe should adopt further costly sanctions against Russia if Moscow does not introduce measures to de-escalate tensions in eastern Ukraine, the White House said in a statement. The two leaders said Russia must stop its "destabilizing activities,” according to the statement.
07 July 2014
European Union ambassadors agreed in principle on Monday to put more people on the bloc's Russia sanctions list over the crisis in Ukraine, an EU diplomat said.
The names of the people who will be targeted with asset freezes and travel bans will be worked out at another meeting of EU ambassadors on Wednesday, the diplomat said. (Reuters)
Kiev’s military has again shelled the city of Lugansk in eastern Ukraine, using Grad multiple rocket launchers, causing casualties and damaging several buildings, Itar-Tass reports, citing the self-defense headquarters of the Lugansk People’s Republic.
At least 30 rockets were fired at Lugansk, the source said, adding that one of them hit a vehicle, killing several people who were inside it.
Within an hour after the bombing started, the self-defense forces responded with mortar shelling, following which the military stopped their offensive, Lugansk People’s Republic representatives said.
The Ukrainian military are attempting to encircle the cities of Donetsk and Lugansk to block access for the self-defense forces to get supplies, Andrey Lysenko, the speaker for the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council, told journalists. He added that residents of the two East Ukrainian cities won’t be blocked.
“For local residents, that means that they are free to leave these towns, pass through checkpoints and be provided with aid,” Lysenko said, Itar-Tass reported.
There can be no excuses or pretexts for postponing the ceasefire in Ukraine, as civilians are suffering as a result of the confrontation, the number of refugees is increasing and the civilian infrastructure is being destroyed, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said at a news conference in Sofia, Bulgaria.
“We really want this goal [the ceasefire] to be obvious to all states that influence the sides [of the Ukrainian conflict] in one way or another – primarily to the EU. We believe that leading European states do realize their responsibility for what is happening, and we really want the US to understand that responsibility as well,” Lavrov said.
Belgrade supports all the initiatives on the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis put forward by President Vladimir Putin, Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandr Vucic said during a meeting in Moscow with his Russian counterpart, Dmitry Medvedev.
Despite multiple calls from Moscow, Ukraine’s western partners, international organizations and the public, Kiev is pursuing its mass military campaign in the east of the country, resulting in casualties and the destruction of infrastructure.
“Kiev is turning a deaf ear to calls to save people’s lives,” the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The Ukraine government forces “are destroying their own cities using tactics that even occupation forces hardly ever apply in hostile territory.”
On July 6, “the National Guard chasteners” were carrying out a mop-up operation in Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.
“Local police employees have been arrested and taken to an unknown location. Everyone who is suspected of cooperation with the Donetsk People’s Republic militia are facing repressions; even those who’ve ever given an interview to Russian journalists are being arrested,” the statement reads.
Moscow hopes that the EU will adequately react to the situation and condemn “Kiev government’s criminal policy.”
Three bridges over roads leading into the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk have been destroyed by explosions, blocking key access routes to the city.
Moscow is concerned with reports of eastern Ukrainian cities abandoned by self-defense forces still being shelled by Ukrainian troops.
“We are getting the most troubling information, saying that the Ukrainian troops continue mass shelling of the territories, like Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, which were abandoned by the self-defense forces,” said Russian Foreign Ministry’s commissioner for human rights, Konstantin Dolgov. “That means that this whole punitive operation from start to end is an attempt to exert pressure on a significant part of the Ukrainian population which is dissatisfied, does not want to reconcile with the plans the authorities in Kiev are imposing on them.”
Dolgov has called for an immediate termination of the military operation by Kiev.
#Ukraine Arrested police officers of #Slavyansk moving to interrogation center. #Donbaspic.twitter.com/13D5QmEcy0
— Vagelis Karmiros (@VagelisKarmiros) July 6, 2014
Police are investigating a shooting in Kiev's Maidan square among pro-Kiev activists that have resulted in three deaths, Unian reports.
3 people dead after shooting on #Maidanpic.twitter.com/0Iw1IW1tdM
— Babay (@Truth_Seeker_11) July 6, 2014
"Today, at about midnight a conflict between persons calling themselves Maidan self-defense activists escalated into a gunfight on the square,” the agency cites a police source. One other person has received wounds to his stomach and is now in a hospital.
06 July 2014
Tripartite contact group of senior representatives from Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE expressed the need to urgently take concrete measures for the peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian domestic crisis, and to hold the next round of consultations as soon as possible.
“On the basis of President Poroshenko’s Peace Plan and of the Joint Declaration of four Foreign Ministers adopted in Berlin on July 2, 2014, the Contact Group underlined that it was a matter of urgency to make concrete progress towards a peaceful settlement of the crisis,” the OSCE said in a statement following the meeting in Kiev.
Around 2,000 protesters gathered in the center of Donetsk, the citadel of the anti-Kiev struggle in the east of Ukraine, to hold a rally against the Kiev authorities.
The protesters brought flags and placards with them, demanding an immediate cessation of Kiev's military operation in Donbass. The people's governor of the Donetsk Republic addressed the crowd, explaining the reasons behind self-defense forces tactical retreat from Slavyansk.
Interior Minister Arsen Avakov has announced that under President Poroshenko's orders “humanitarian corridors” have been opened in eastern Ukraine amid the ongoing offensive against self-defense militia and airstrikes near Lugansk.
“It is a priority that civilians of Slavyansk and Kramatorks speedily receive what is needed for every Ukrainian citizen: care of oneself, in this situation, that water and electricity returns to Slavyansk, for the television to start working,” Avakov said, Itar-Tass reports. Earlier, after militia left Slavyansk and Kramatorsk on Saturday, Poroshenko ordered that all civilian infrastructure destroyed by months of government shelling should be rebuilt “within a day.”
Kiev authorities are arresting all men aged between 25 and 35 years old in the city of Slavyansk, Oleg Tsarev of the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics told Rossiya 24 TV. The state security forces are detaining all men in the age gap, without investigating whether they have joined the self-defense forces or not.
"Over night they arrested all police officers and moved them out of town. Now they are arresting all guys from 25 to 35 years old, and it doesn't matter whether they've touched weapons or not. Searches are being conducted. They’re trying to figure out who helped feeding the injured," Tsarev said.
The Ukrainian army occupied several cities and towns in the country's east over the weekend, according to a report from the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council. Slavyansk, Kramatorsk, Druzhkovka and Konstantinovka in the Donetsk region were said to have been taken over by Kiev. Ukraine state flags were raised above the city council buildings there, Council spokesman Andrey Lysenko said on Sunday.
The fifth town - Artyomovsk - was added to the list in a Defense Ministry report to Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko.
Poroshenko has ordered the Defense Minister Valery Geletey to start recovery works on the infrastructure in the towns and provide the delivery of food and water to the locals, the presidential press-service reported.
The Ukrainian army will besiege the cities of Lugansk and Donetsk in the country's east, in an attempt to make the self-defense forces lay down arms, Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council official told Ukrainian Inter TV channel on Sunday.
"The main strategic plan of the Ukrainian army is to besiege Lugansk and Donetsk," Mikhail Koval, deputy secretary of the Council said. Such measures will force the local "separatists" to lay down arms, he added.
Ukrainian forces attacked the suburbs of the city of Lugansk from the air.
"Ukrainian aviation launched missile strikes at Aleksandrovka, the Lugansk suburb. Ukrainian airplanes are in the skies above Lugansk. A siren is on," press service of the Donetsk People's Republic wrote on Twitter.
The attack was launched the same day Kiev said it would not bombard armed groups in Lugansk and Donetsk from the air. "The tactics of the Ukrainian Army, the National Guard and the Border Service are such that massive bombardment of residential areas is excluded," Andrey Lysenko, spokesman of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council said on Sunday.
Two refugees - a woman and a girl - were injured while fleeing their hometown of Slavyansk in eastern Ukraine.
A convoy of the self-defense forces was moving away from the towns of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, with some refugee families joining the military convoy.
"Some drivers forgot the black-out order and had their headlights on. We were located by the enemy, who fired at us with Grad rocket launchers, hitting the convoy’s tail," a Donetsk People's Republic representative told RIA Novosti.
Some 30 refugees - mostly women and children - arrived in the city of Donetsk on Sunday. People had to flee their hometown of Kramatorsk, where they "had to walk several kilometers under gunfire to get water to give to the children," one woman said.
Refugees are now awaiting temporary accommodation. Living a normal everyday life was impossible while hiding in Kramatorsk bomb shelters, a woman said: "We couldn't even go home to take a shower, to feed our children, to take food for ourselves. They don't give us any money, no child support, no salaries. We don't even have jobs anymore... Look at us, what kind of separatists are we?"
Heavy gunfire has been heard in several areas of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, as well as the outskirts of the cities, and the Ukrainian artillery has carried out several shelling attacks, locals told RIA Novosti news agency.
There is no information regarding the victims.
The assault comes a day after self-defense forces left the area, moving to Donetsk, Gorlovka and Snezhnoye.
05 July 2014
At least 80 wounded have been admitted to hospitals in Lugansk in the last 24 hours, as a result of Kiev's shelling of civilian quarters, Victor Avakyan, health minister of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic, told RIA Novosti. He says that 56 patients are civilians while 24 come from the self-defense forces.
Sounds of explosions and gunfire could be heard in the center of Donetsk, where the Ukrainian army is shelling the areas held by anti-Kiev forces, RIA reports citing eyewitnesses.
“Our roadblocks in Karlovka are being shelled from the direction of Galitsinovka and Zhelannoe Vtoroe villages,” self-defense source told the agency. “Their goal is to take Karlovka and then proceed in the direction of Donetsk airport,” where Kiev has concentrated massive forces, the source added.
The Ukrainian army has resumed shelling of the outskirts of Slavyansk, locals told RIA. “There’s artillery shelling of Severnyi and Celinny neighborhoods,” witness said, adding that several fires have started in the area. Earlier the self-defense forces of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic left the cities of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, but said that some of the militia men stayed inside the besieged cities along with the remaining civilian population.
Ukrainian army tanks have entered the town of Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, reports a stringer for RT’s Ruptly video agency.
A road bridge over the Seversky Donets River has been damaged by a blast, reports UNIAN agency, citing the Interior Ministry’s press-service in the Lugansk region.
We r on the street next 2 anti-govt.forces HQ (frmr regional govt. build), center of #Lugansk in E.#Ukraine.Sounds of heavy shelling,near
— Maria Finoshina (@MFinoshina_RT) July 5, 2014
According to the description, this video depicts Ukrainian army shelling the Saur-Grave memorial complex with a Grad multiple-rocket launcher. The memorial was built in late 1960s in the Donetsk Region on a hill that played an important strategic role in the WWII and was the site of bloody battles between the Soviet Army and Hitler’s troops.
An air raid by Ukrainian forces caused the evacuation of people from the building of the Donetsk regional administration, Boris Litvinov, the chief of staff of the People's Republic of Donetsk, reported Saturday.
"The militia asked us to leave the building for a couple of hours to avoid possible casualties," Litvinov said, adding that "the Cabinet functioned as normal."
A group of unidentified people wearing masks have attacked the Kiev offices of Vesti newspaper.
According to Igor Guzhva, the editor-in-chief of the Russian-language paper, about 50 people “wearing balaclavas” arrived at the office around noon Saturday.
“They were throwing stones, smoke pellets. Witnesses said that shots were being heard. And then they ran away,” he told Ukraine’s Channel 112 TV. “That all took them just about one or two minutes.”
As a result of the attack, a couple of computer monitors in the newsroom were crushed; there are stones and broken glass on the floor.
Police are investigating the incident, Guzhva said, adding that despite the attack, the newspaper will be published Monday as planned.
В Киеве разгромили редакцию "Вестей". pic.twitter.com/0bF9K8GEfb
— Антимайдан (@myrevolutionrus) July 5, 2014
Russia’s Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case in response to a Russian crime scene investigation team being shelled in the Rostov region from Ukrainian territory near the “Donetsk” checkpoint, committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said.
Markin said those shelled wore jackets bearing “Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation” signs. They were checking whether Russian territory had been shelled by Ukrainian troops.
“The investigative team found traces of shelling in a forest on Russian territory,” Itar-Tass quoted Markin as saying. “Field engineers started to check them out. At that moment Ukrainian troops, the Ukrainian National Guard and Right Sector militants fired not less than eight shots from unidentified weapons, by unidentified missiles.”
Staff are being evacuated from the Donetsk regional administration, according to the press service of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic, Itar-Tass reports. The reasons for the evacuation are as yet unclear. It comes at the time of a scheduled session by the Republic’s authorities.
Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Russia's Ryazan region, accompanied by members of the Emergencies Ministry. They are part of some 220 people that arrived from Crimea to Moscow aboard two Russian rescue planes.
"Upon arrival in Ryazan region, the Ukrainian citizens were placed in two locations of temporary residence. Rescuers, firefighters, representatives of Social Welfare helped newcomers to settle in and provided them with everything necessary for living," the Emergency Ministry said in a statement.
Украинские беженцы доставлены в Рязанскую область Спасатели, пожарные, предста... http://t.co/KGuii8GoXXpic.twitter.com/oCVQmuAC8m
— Михаил Редров (@redrov1976) July 5, 2014
04 July 2014
NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, will visit the US from July 7 to 9, according to Itar-tass. US president Barack Obama and Rasmussen will discuss the situation in Ukraine. Negotiations on this issue will be held on Tuesday.
US ambassador to Ukraine Geoffrey Pyatt told the KievPost the US is to increase its security spending in the country to $23 million this year. The money is mainly to be used for non-lethal aid, including the improvement of border controls, purchase of night vision goggles and 2,000 suits of body armor for Ukrainian troops. Pyatt also cited closer military cooperation and training.
A video showing Ukrainian army gunners preparing for a shelling on the outskirts of the town of Slavyansk, Donetsk region.
Ukrainian military stationed at checkpoints in the village of Nikolayevka on the outskirts of Slavyansk, Donetsk region, shoot on sight at cars of civilians who are attempting to flee the area, reports Itar-Tass citing locals. Such actions contradict an earlier reached agreement and a promise by Kiev authorities to allow all those willing to leave the village unhampered. There were no immediate reports of casualties as a result of the shootings.
Ten Russian border guards and security officials came under fire from shells launched from across the Ukrainian border, according to Rostov regional FSB chief Vasiliy Malaev.
The group went to a residential district in the Russian town of Donetsk after locals complained that several unexploded shells landed from the other side of the border. As specialists were preparing to defuse the explosives, shells from a new barrage began to explode all around, forcing the officers to evacuate civilians.
No one was wounded in the attack, but a police car was damaged.
Moscow says Ukraine's "strident rhetoric" and military actions in the southeast of the country have intensified after its government held phone talks with US and UK officials on July 3.
"Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko spoke to US Vice-President Joe Biden, and Ukraine's Foreign Minister Pavel Klimkin spoke to UK Foreign Minister William Hague, who have in essence supported Kiev's actions," Russia's Foreign Ministry said in a statement July 4.
In a new statement from Russia’s Foreign Ministry, Moscow "once again [urges] Ukrainian authorities to stop firing at civilian targets and residential neighborhoods, to consider saving ordinary people's lives.”
The statement, published after the new escalation of conflict in eastern Ukraine, says that Kiev's methods of solving the situation "through the use of force, ultimatums and releases of new demands" contradicts the Berlin Declaration, established by the Foreign Ministers of Germany, Russia, Ukraine and France on July 2.
According to Russian children’s rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov, 20 people, including two children, have died in southeast Ukraine over the past day, the Foreign Ministry said.
Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has spoken with EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton over the phone, telling her that Kiev is ready for contact group talks on July 5, and suggested time and location to other participants, according to the presidential website.
Self-defense forces in Donetsk have stated that the Kiev’s artillery have started shelling near the city.
“In Donetsk, heavy shelling is heard from the Karlovka-Krasnogorovka area,” the Donetsk People’s Republic tweeted. The artillery shelling began early in the morning.
The Ukrainian authorities have been conducting the so-called anti-terrorist campaign to crack down on the self-defense forces since April.
Shelling of Kramatorsk has destroyed the building of the last working local newspaper “Technopolis”, RIA Novosti reports.
The publication claims, that now it will not be able to print its material. “Luckily, there are no victims,” the newspaper said, adding that because of the power outage, no one was at the building at the time of the strike.
03 July 2014
More than 20 people have been killed in the last 24 hours, including two children, as a result of the shelling by the Ukrainian army in the eastern parts of the country, Russian children’s rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov said, according to RIA Novosti.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) says that there are more Ukrainian refugees in Russia than the official figures state.
"The exact figures are unknown. If official data is there, but the data on those who staying with their friends and relatives, are difficult to obtain," the head of the ICRC regional delegation in Moscow Pascal Cuttat told RIA Novosti.
Павел Астахов предлагает открыть недействующие детдома для беженцев #Украина#Астахов#беженцыhttp://t.co/U1uyeU9VZWpic.twitter.com/DRi6PnzcJA
— Вечерняя Москва (@onlinevmru) July 3, 2014
The Red Cross, Cuttat says has no accurate data about victims of the conflict in Ukraine.
"I do not have specific numbers for the victims. But the situation is very complicated, and it affects not only those who are wounded. The Lives of all people have undergone major changes,” he said.
Two buses carrying 85 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Russia's Vladimir region. En route from Kramatorsk, the column sustained heavy fire from Ukrainian forces. No one was injured, RIA Novosti reports, citing an official from the Emrgencies Ministry.
A Russian psycologist is now on site helping the refugees, especially the children deal with the trauma.
Беженцы с востока Украины прибыли в #Дмитров`ский район. http://t.co/68Ne6dZKYl#Подмосковьеpic.twitter.com/5REkNLlBVO
— Единое Подмосковье (@unitedmo) July 3, 2014
Meanwhile, the UN representative tasked with surveying Russia's preparedness to deal with the influx of refugees has praised Moscow's efforts as she visited camps in Voronezh.
“In the Voronezh region, we saw high organization at different levels, people find the legal, social and, most importantly, psychological help," said Zelmira Sinclair from UNHCR, the world's watchdog for refugees.
The Donetsk and Lugansk regions say they are ready for a mutual ceasefire, but do not trust President Poroshenko’s intentions. Poroshenko stated earlier that a ceasefire was possible, but only if obeyed by both sides and if hostages are freed and Kiev’s control restored at Ukraine’s borders.
“I don’t believe in Poroshenko’s peaceful initiatives,” Fyodor Berezin, the deputy defense minister of the Donetsk People’s Republic said, RIA Novosti reported.
He also said that self-defense forces “have no hostages” but only “army prisoners,” while Kiev “has many of our hostages.”
Smoke rising from residential areas in the town of Kramatorsk in the Donetsk Region after it was shelled by Kiev forces.
Journalists working for Russia’s Channel One TV have come under fire in the city of Slavyansk in eastern Ukraine, the station said in a statement. The hotel where the crew is staying was shelled as the journalists were working.
The bombardment comes just days after Channel One cameraman Anatoly Klyan, 68, was killed in a mortar attack by Kiev forces.
The Kiev forces are continuing to shell the village of Nikolayevka on the outskirts of Slavyansk, with eyewitnesses speaking of massive destruction and possible casualties.
“The military is using Smersh multiple-launch missile systems. Five or six high-rise buildings have been destroyed. Civilians may remain in the rubble,” the self-defense forces in Slavyansk told RIA-Novosti.
It’s also reported that a thermal electric power station in the village has caught fire as a result of the attack.
Nikolayevka is a strategic settlement as it provides routes connecting Slavyansk with other territories controlled by anti-government forces.
Kiev authorities have decided to make their troops undergo lie detector tests to find Russian spies, Ukrainian MP Yury Sirotyuk from the Svoboda (Freedom) political party wrote on his Facebook page.
The politicians believe that the polygraph tests will improve the efficiency of the Ukrainian armed forces during their “anti-terrorist” operation in eastern Ukraine.
The leaders of Russia, France and Germany have called for OSCE observers to take a more active role in monitoring the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict, a day after negotiating a new ceasefire with Kiev in Berlin, the Kremlin press service reports.
A previous mission had been hampered by the danger of violence and abductions, and had to be curtailed.
Two Donetsk Railroad employees and a child were killed on Wednesday in the airstrikes launched by Kiev forces near Kondrashevskaya-Novayа station, Donetsk Region, report the officials from the railroad. The officials added that the bombs hit a residential area.
A humanitarian corridor will be created in the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, the chairman of the joint parliamentary assembly of these republics, Oleg Tsarev, announced.
“We will surely create humanitarian corridors – in the opposite case, people will die of hunger. We won’t allow it to happen,” Tsarev told the media.
He also claimed that he has no information about the meeting of the Contact Group on Ukraine, which includes representatives of Kiev, the southeast of the country and the OSCE. Earlier, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier said that negotiations would take place by July 5.
Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, has ratified the choice of President Petro Poroshenko for the new defense minister.
Valery Geletey became head of Ukraine’s Defense Ministry on Thursday. Two hundred and sixty members of the Rada voted in favor of Geletey. The 46-year-old colonel-general earlier served as the head of security at the presidential and parliamentary administration.
Poroshenko also appointed General Viktor Muzhenko as a new head of General Staff. His predecessor, Mikhail Kutsyi, earlier received severe injuries and brain concussion in the ongoing military action and is currently in hospital.
Moscow demands that Ukrainian authorities stop shelling civilian objects in the country in order to save the lives of local people, said Russian FM Sergey Lavrov at a press conference with his Moroccan counterpart.
“The Western countries should urge Kiev to follow the declaration approved in Berlin which calls for the formation of a special contact group aiming at establishing a truce in Ukraine,” he added.
A roadmap of measures that will point a way out of the Ukrainian crisis has been agreed during four-way talks between the foreign ministers of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine on July 2.
The pro-war protest has renewed on Thursday in front of the Ukrainian parliament. The demonstrators from volunteer paramilitary units Donbas and Kiev-1, among others, have surrounded the building and demand that martial law be declared in the east of the country.
There is a heavy police presence in the area, reports ITAR-TASS.
The protest comes as President Petro Poroshenko is scheduled to speak in the parliament. A similar pro-war rally was held in Kiev last Sunday.
Several mortar shells fired from Ukrainian territory landed near the Russian border checkpoint at Novoshakhtinsk. They caused mild damage, but no injuries or deaths, spokesman for the Rostov Region’s border guard division of the Federal Security Service Vasily Malaev told ITAR-TASS.
The shells apparently went astray as the militia fired at the Kiev-controlled checkpoint of Dolzhansky on Thursday morning, which is located on the Ukrainian side of the border.
The Russian checkpoint temporarily suspended its regular operations after the incident.
Kramatorsk and Slavyansk are suffering a humanitarian catastrophe after the Ukrainian army destroyed the central water supply line to both cities, the commander of Slavyansk self-defense, Igor Strelkov, told LifeNews. Water supply is only available from a few wells in the cities.
Outlining the military encounters with Ukrainian forces on Wednesday Strelkov said the village of Nikolayevka came under heavy fire.
Kiev's forces were supported by a “huge number of artillery, ammunition and tanks. They were targeting the militia, but also residential quarters and the water supply pipes,” adding that in Semyonovka, Grad rockets were used.
“We lost more than ten people. The militia managed to destroy a tank. I think in the next few days fighting in this direction will continue,” Strelkov said.
02 July 2014
The Ukrainian forces destroyed an orphanage in Lugansk during the operation on Tuesday.
“The Ukrainian army destroyed an orphanage in Slavyansk...Glory to “heroes”?” Russia's ombudsman for children's rights, Pavel Astakhov informed via his Instagram
Footage from destruction, posted by LifeNews, shows the extent of the indiscriminate shelling by Ukrainian forces against the civilian population. Luckily, the orphans were evacuated on May 23.
The employees of the orphanage hid in the basement, as the bombardment of the neighborhood lasted about 6 hours.
Ukrainian forces have reportedly intensified shelling of Lugansk and Kramatorsk. Ria Novosti’s correspondent on the ground reports that artillery fire started at around 9:30 pm local time in Lugansk. The shots appear to be coming from the direction of Metallist village, where Ukrainian troops are engaging the self-defense forces.
Meanwhile in Kramatork, Donetsk region, a source from the militia told Itar-Tass that cluster bombs were allegedly used in the shelling there, which also intensified Wednesday night.
“It is possible that they are using cluster ammunition. We hear massive explosions, followed by dozens of less powerful ones,” the source said.
Lugansk Region militia has released two Ukrainian journalists who were detained earlier this week. They were freed after a joint call from three major Russian TV channels, the head of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic Valery Bolotov said.
Hromadske TV, for which correspondent Anastasia Stanko and cameraman Ilya Bezkorovayny work, thanked “everyone involved in the freeing” of its journalists.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko is now personally responsible for all the victims of Kiev’s military campaign in the southeast of the country, Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said.
“By breaking the truce [with self-defense forces in the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk] President Poroshenko has made a dramatic mistake. It’ll bring new victims. And for all of them, he’ll be personally responsible,” Medvedev wrote on his Facebook page.
Almost 18,000 Ukrainian refugees are currently staying in temporary accommodation centers on Russian territory, Emergencies Ministry spokesman Aleksandr Drobyshevsky said.
“During the last 24 hours, two more temporary accommodation centers have been established, and they accepted 355 people,” Drobyshevsky told RIA-Novosti news agency.
According to the spokesman, there are currently 252 temporary accommodation centers for Ukrainian refugees in Russia, hosting a total of 17,828 people.
Five people have died and eight others received injuries in a Ukrainian military airstrike against Staraya Kondrashovka northeast of the city of Lugansk.
Eyewitnesses told Itar-Tass news agency that a 200-meter street in the village was ravaged in the attack.
Many of the houses are destroyed to the ground, with some still being on fire, they added.
At least 200 people have been killed and another 600 injured since the start of Kiev’s anti-terrorist operation in eastern Ukraine, the country’s national security service said.
Three Ukrainian soldiers were killed and 10 other injured in fighting in the in the south-east, Andrey Lysenko, chairman of the Ukrainian National Security and Defense Council, said.
According to Lysenko, Kiev troops and self-defense forces of the People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk engaged in combat on 19 occasions during the last 24 hours.
Several militia groups were trying to break out of the encirclement near the town of Slavyansk in the Donetsk Region, he said.
During the night, a military installation near the village of Melovoye in Lugansk Region was also attacked by the self-defense forces, Lysenko added.
The heads of three leading Russian TV stations have called on the authorities of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic to release the journalists from Ukraine’s Hromadske TV.
“Regardless of the position media professionals take in the Ukrainian conflict, they must be allowed to do their jobs unhindered,” they said in a joint statement.
Hromadske TV correspondent Anastasia Stanko and cameraman Ilya Beskorovainy were reported as detained by Lugansk militias on Tuesday. The militia fighters suspect them of gathering intelligence for the Ukrainian military. The detention was condemned by the OSCE.
Earlier, troops loyal to Kiev detained on separate occasions several Russian journalists and held them in custody for several days.
#UKRAINE:ATO forces waged artillery fire @ #Kramatorsk overnight. Several residential houses caught fire.3ppl from the same family killed.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) July 2, 2014
A Russian citizen has been killed after Kiev troops shelled the city of Slavyansk, eastern Ukraine, reported LifeNews. According to the neighbors of the victim, she arrived from St. Petersburg to see if her apartment in Slavyansk was safe after repeated attacks from Ukrainian army. When the shelling started, many of the local residents hurried to the bomb shelters but the Russian woman didn’t manage to reach the shelter and was killed in the apartment building. Three people were also injured in the attack. One woman remains in serious condition.
01 July 2014
The Prime Minister of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk Aleksander Boroday declared his readiness to continue consultations on the ceasefire, following the first two meetings between Donetsk and Lugansk representatives and those of Kiev, RIA Novosti reports.
“We take into account the opinion of the Russian Foreign Ministry and the OSCE. Given these opinions, we declare readiness to continue consultations on the ceasefire if the opposite side is ready for it,” Boroday said in Donetsk.
According to him, one of the stumbling blocks is the date for talks and the venue. The advisory group is apparently afraid to go to Donetsk amid the so-called ‘anti-terrorist’ operation, Boroday said adding that he has offered to provide maximum security for all participants.
The next meeting of the so-called tripartite contact group tasked with defusing the tension in Ukraine’s Donbass could also take place in Minsk, Belarus if all parties agree.
#Краматорск Под артобстрел попала маршрутка с людьми pic.twitter.com/hVSr2AQhVm
— СЛАВЯНСК - НАШ ГОРОД (@Nash_Slavyansk) July 1, 2014
Boroday said that in the meantime Kiev is continuing its assault in eastern Ukraine. “The shooting did not stop. Our enemy continued shelling Slavyansk, Snezhnij and Kramatorsk.”
Russia's Volgograd region has imposed a state of emergency due to the influx of a large number of refugees from south-eastern Ukraine.
"The decree on the introduction of such a regime tonight was signed by the governor Andrei Bocharov,” his spokeswoman, Ekaterina Golod, told Itar-Tass, saying that about 5,000 refugees are now in the region.
#Ukraine#refugee flow prompts emergency regime in #Volgograd, #Russia to provide assistance http://t.co/aVTK2XMDFwpic.twitter.com/DcbOFlJRSi
— BulgariCA (@bulgarica) July 2, 2014
She said that the state of emergency will enable the authorities to better provide for the needs of the Ukrainian refugees escaping military operations in their country.
Golod said that mobile offices are already setup in refugee camps, that are designed to provide proper “sanitary” conditions as well as serve to provide migration registration.
Power has been cut off in the city of Slavyansk as a result of military actions. The city of Kramatorsk has also faced partial disruption to the electricity supply.
There is no power in Kramatorsk’s central hospital, maternity wards and surgical department, the local power company said. It added that it is impossible to restore power as military action continues.
Entrances to Lugansk airport have been mined and cut off from the outside world, an assistant in Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, Anton Geraschenko, said.
He added the Ukrainian army controls the airport. Planes are not permitted to land.
Two Ukrainian journalists from local Gromadske TV, who have been detained by self-defense forces in a seized building in Lugansk, are safe and sound, RIA Novosti reported.
Съемочная группа Громадське.ТВ задержана представителями ЛНР http://t.co/wx6F2pTDuYpic.twitter.com/T8nIjZ1ZZ5
— Максим Гуляев (@MaxRazGulyaev) July 1, 2014
“Negotiations are being held. I can tell they are in one of the seized buildings in Lugansk, at least they are alive, safe and sound,” said Yuriy Stetsya from the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine.
He added the self-defense troops have not made any demands.
Self-defense forces say they have shot down two government strike-fighter jets during an engagement in Lugansk.
“Five government planes flew over the Cossack settlement of Luganskaya and dropped bombs,” said Vladimir Inogorodskiy, the press secretary of the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk.
Народное ополчение дает отпор нацистской авиации, 1.07.2014 сбито 2 штурмовика СУ-25 #сопротивление#Новороссияpic.twitter.com/LCy3ykFbA0
— Alex V (@wmk2u) July 1, 2014
“After we brought down two of them, the other three managed to get away.”
Earlier, militias in the Donetsk Region claimed they also shot down a government plane.
Штурмовик Су-25 с ловушками на борту. pic.twitter.com/3MLTJTTOEI
— Dmitry Molokovich (@dima_molokovich) July 1, 2014
Government forces have captured three villages in the Donetsk Region, destroying a "separatist training camp” in the process, according to National Guard commander Stepan Poltorak.
Three government soldiers were wounded near the village of Zakotny during the six-hour operation
Several apartment buildings caught fire following mortar shelling in Lugansk, Itar-Tass reports. There have been no reports of casualties so far.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned of a "new round of bloodshed" during a a telephone call with US Secretary of State John Kerry.
"Lavrov stressed that the decision by (Ukrainian) President Petro Poroshenko not to extend the ceasefire ... unleashes a new round of bloodshed, with unpredictable consequences for the Ukrainian state," the Foreign Ministry said in a statement on its website.
Lavrov urges Kerry to persuade #Kyiv that its course in eastern #Ukraine is destructive http://t.co/ch470W67QPpic.twitter.com/Y0Hwsr8Gq4
— Kyiv Post (@KyivPost) July 1, 2014
Lavrov emphasized that the countries concerned in the crisis should work together to achieve immediate and sustainable ceasefire, to address urgent humanitarian needs and start real negotiations. John Kerry assured Lavrov that he shares these goals. However, he acknowledged the differences in their approaches on how to achieve them.
One of the self-defense force leaders, Igor Bezler, has attempted to seize power in the Donetsk Region as his troops have taken control of local police headquarters, RIA Novosti reported, citing a representative of the office of the Donetsk People’s Republic’s prime minister, Aleksandr Borodai.
“Igor Bezlar, aka Bes and his unit, have seized the local police HQ,” the source told the news agency.
A criminal case has been launched.
Earlier reports said that five people were injured in a shooting outside the police office.
“There is an anti-terrorist operation is going on now. In case of resistance, terrorists will be eliminated,” the source added.
Several gunshots have been heard in the center of Kiev, where people have gathered for mass protests, Vesti.ua reports. Among the demonstrators are local doctors demanding an end to corruption in the healthcare sector and Euromaidan activists.
#Donetsk:Ppl reportedly evacuating shooting zone in city's center. Kiev's ATO resumed last night. Photo:@novostidnuapic.twitter.com/v6ank6gjsM
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) July 1, 2014
Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has called the authorities to take necessary measures to ensure the safe work of journalists in the country’s south-east, where Kiev launched a massive military operation, reported the presidential press service.
Earlier on Tuesday, two journalists from Russian Ren TV were injured in Lugansk Region after shelling from Kiev troops. All in all, five journalists have been killed in the recent violence in the south-east of the troubled country.
Russia has demanded that Kiev stop the military attacks in eastern Ukraine and announce a new ceasefire.
“Unfortunately the first hours after the termination on June 30 by Kiev of its ceasefire the number of victims among the civilian population has increased,” the Russian Foreign Ministry stressed in a statement.
“We demand that the Ukrainian authorities stopped the shelling of peaceful cities and villages of their nation and return to a real rather than phony ceasefire to protect lives,” it added.
Ukrainian journo & cameraman from #HromadskeTV reportedly captured by #Lugansk People's Republic fighters last night. Ukr media reports.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) July 1, 2014
A Russian TV crew has been caught under fire near the village of Izvaryino in Lugansk Region, 1km from the Ukraine-Russian border, a Ren TV official representative told RT.
Correspondent Denis Kulaga and cameraman Vadim Shchukin were severely injured.
“A shell, presumably, from a howitzer exploded near Ren TV journalists,” she said, “Everything happened the moment our journalists were working on the territory of the local poultry factory, which was shelled by mortars by Ukraine’s army.”
The EU is calling on Kiev to investigate violations against journalists in eastern Ukraine, Maya Kosyanchich, spokesperson for EU Foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton, told Itar-Tass.
The death of Russian journalist Anatoly Klyan is yet "another testimony to the severity of the situation in the region,” Kosyanchich said, condemning the 68-year-old's murder.
The situation in southeastern Ukraine "seriously harms media freedom and freedom of expression," she added.
30 June 2014
The Committee to Protect Journalists has condemned the killing of Anatoly Klyan.
"The killing of Anatoly Klyan underscores that eastern Ukraine remains extremely dangerous for journalists despite reports of dialogue between Ukrainian and Russian leaders," CPJ Europe and Central Asia Program Coordinator Nina Ognianova said.
"We urge Ukrainian authorities to carry out a swift and transparent investigation into Klyan's death, and call on the pro-Russian separatists to ensure that they do not put journalists in unnecessarily dangerous situations."
The OSCE Representative on Freedom of the Media, Dunja Mijatović, has expressed her condolences to the family of cameraman Anatoly Klyan, who was killed while filming near a Ukrainian military compound in the Donetsk region.
“Members of the media continue to pay the highest price possible,” Mijatović wrote in a letter to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. “I fully understand the difficult situation in Ukraine and the fact that the national authorities do not control parts of the territory controlled by separatists in the eastern part of the country, but once again I call on all parties in this conflict to respect media freedom and refrain from any violence against members of the media,” Mijatović said.
She reminded Poroshenko that the death toll of journalists killed in eastern Ukraine stands at five, and urged the newly-elected president “to swiftly and thoroughly investigate the circumstances of Klyan’s death and all other deadly attacks on journalists, and to hold those responsible accountable.”
Strong explosions and intense shooting from automatic weapons is being reported in the vicinity of Kramatorsk airport in the Donetsk region, Itar-Tass reports, citing a representative of the local militia.
According to the source, the attack by Ukrainian troops began at around 19:30 GMT, after the extended ceasefire came to an end. He added that the ceasefire was also broken earlier on Monday, when Yasnogorsk village near Kramatorsk was shelled by Kiev's troops.
“A direct hit destroyed the lodge building, resulting in the death of one man. Another survived because he was at some distance,” the source said, adding that five people were also killed after a local market in Slavyansk was shelled by the Ukrainian army.
A ceasefire between Kiev troops and self-defense forces in southeastern regions of Ukraine expired at 10 p.m. local time (19:00 GMT). Last Friday, President Poroshenko prolonged the truce for 72 hours. Despite the ceasefire, shelling continued in Lugansk and Donetsk regions.
Russia and the EU are calling for a new round of negotiations between Kiev and protesting regions in southeastern Ukraine. Talking to leaders of France, Germany and Ukraine, President Putin stressed the necessity of prolonging the ceasefire. He also called for the creation of a mechanism to control how the truce is observed by both sides.
“The leaders have called for a third round of consultations between Kiev representatives and the southeastern regions as soon as possible,” the Kremlin said in a statement following the talks. "Putin stressed the need to extend the ceasefire and create a reliable mechanism for monitoring compliance with it, with the the OSCE [Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe] playing an active role," the statement said.
Human Rights Watch (HRW) has said the Ukrainian authorities “must” fully investigate the tragedy in which a Russian cameraman was fatally wounded.
“The government of Ukraine should do more to avoid harming civilians during law enforcement operations,” Yulia Gorbunova, Ukraine researcher at HRW, told RT. “Journalists, unless they are taking direct part in hostilities, are civilians and under international humanitarian law may never be targets of an attack during an armed conflict.”
A residential district in Slavyansk was described by one local as "a terrible mess" on Monday, after Ukrainian forces shelled the area on Sunday, damaging buildings and killing at least 3 people.
The Organization of Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) won’t extend the number of its observers in Ukraine as the situation in the country presents a threat for the organization’s employees, said Thomas Greminger, Permanent Representative of Switzerland to the OSCE in Vienna.
“According to the OSCE rules, up to 500 people may be sent to the region. However, we don’t want to extend the personnel of the OSCE in Ukraine due to risk,” he added.
Kiev, by any means, including provocations, is endangering Russian journalists and is suppressing their attempts to deliver the truth about what is happening in Ukraine, said the Russian Foreign Ministry.
“The journalists who are bravely performing their professional duty are at gunpoint from Ukrainian troops and ultranationalists,” said the ministry in a statement. “Kiev doesn’t even disdain such methods as physical violence and torture which is forbidden by the international law.”
Kiev troops won’t scare off Russian journalists, says an official statement of Channel One TV, made after the death of its cameraman, Anatoly Klyan, near the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk.
“Ukrainian power continues killing journalists in the south-east - it [Kiev] is not satisfied that it is impossible to hide the actions against its own people,” it said, “There [in Kiev] they prefer to deal with the rebels without witnesses.”
“Our duty is to inform the country and the world what our journalists have witnessed,” it added.
Russia’s Rostov Region has declared an emergency due to the influx of thousands of refugees from neighboring Ukraine. The region-wide emergency comes a month after it was declared in 15 border areas of Rostov. The move is meant to give legal grounds for a swift accommodation of the people fleeing turmoil in Ukraine in refugee camps, region’s government said in a statement.
The flow of refugees from Ukraine intensified in June as Kiev continued to use military force against defiant Donetsk and Lugansk regions. The latest toll by Russian Emergencies Ministry said that more than 17,000 Ukrainians have been accommodated in temporary camps in Russia.
The death of the Russian journalist from Channel One TV in the Donetsk Region has shown that Ukrainian law enforcement agencies apparently don’t want to de-escalate the armed conflict in the east of the country and are blocking the truce, said Russian Foreign Ministry.
A resident from Slavyansk has taken photos of the local market and residential districts after Kiev troops shelled them on Sunday. At least three civilians were killed in a breach of the ceasefire. The photos show houses which walls were apparently smashed in the shelling.
More than 17, 000 Ukrainian refugees are currently housed in the temporary accommodation centers in Russian regions, said Aleksandr Drobyshevsky, an official representative from Russian Emergency Ministry.
Journalists from Mir 24 Channel, Ren TV and LifeNews were caught on fire along with the deceased cameramen from Channel One in the city of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine , reports RIA Novosti.
According to Ren TV correspondent Aleksandr Leonenko, their car was shelled when they entered the city.
“We managed to escape [the car] and hide,” he added.
New video, longer look at the destruction in #Slavyansk, as Ukraine military shelled Artema area of city today - https://t.co/Pk6UxOXAWM
— GrahamWPhillips (@GrahamWP_UK) June 30, 2014
Ukrainian troops fired at Aleksandr Nevsky Cathedral in Slavyansk during Sunday’s liturgy, the website of the local diocese reported. The shooting began at 10 a.m. local time on Sunday, according to archpriest Nikolay Fomenko.
Around 1,000 people attended the service that morning, he said. The attack lasted for about 30 minutes and no one was hurt during the assault. No one was injured on the church premises.
Meanwhile, the city’s central market and Artem district also came under fire, with one woman reportedly dead.
My information is that 5 were killed in further #Slavyansk shelling today. I have exclusive video of that to come, thanks to Andrei Petrov.
— GrahamWPhillips (@GrahamWP_UK) June 30, 2014
Self-defense forces gained control over Ukraine’s air defense base in Donetsk on Sunday, RIA Novosti quoted a self-defense spokesperson as saying. The base reportedly contains 'Buk' self-propelled anti-aircraft missile systems.
29 June 2014
A cameraman for Russia's Channel One TV station died from injuries after being shot by Ukrainian troops in Donetsk, the head of the press service for the Donetsk People’s Republic (DNR) said, as quoted by RIA Novosti.
“The cameraman was injured in the stomach and died of the wounds,” Klavdia Kulbatskaya said.
Channel One has confirmed its cameraman Anatoly Klyan was killed in Donetsk. “Our colleague Anatoly Klyan has died tonight...he was fatally wounded in the stomach. He was 68-years-old,” Channel One said on air.
Read more here
Ukrainian troops have left a military base in Donetsk after being surrounded for three months by self-defense forces, Minister of Internal Affairs Arsen Avakov said on his Facebook page on Sunday. He added that the commander ordered to blow up all the ammunition stored at the warehouses after the approximately 300 troops left the base.
Explosions were confirmed by a representative of the self-defense forces, who suggested the blasts were triggered remotely, RIA Novosti reported.
The Klitchko brothers – Vitaly, the mayor of Kiev and leader of the Udar party, and famous boxer Vladimir – have allocated from personal funds over US$270,000 for arming the Kiev battalion in its fight against local militias in the coup-appointed government’s punitive operation in the east.
Berlin, Paris, Moscow, and Kiev held phone talks on Sunday concerning the Ukrainian crisis.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President François Hollande, and Russian President Vladimir Putin urged Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to extend the ceasefire.
Moscow said the “possibility of deploying OSCE observers to checkpoints on the Russian-Ukrainian border” was discussed, according to the Kremlin press service.
Poroshenko "urged the Russian president to strengthen the state border” and ordered the Ukrainian Border Service to consult with their Russian colleagues “to ensure effective control” of the border, according to Kiev’s press service.
Similar quadruple talks are scheduled for Monday.
The head of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic, Valery Bolotov, has accused Kiev of masterminding the sabotage on the rail tracks in Kharkov region overnight.
Bolotov told journalists the tracks were blown up “as a result of actions of the Ukrainian side,” calling it the latest of Kiev’s “provocations.”
Earlier on Tuesday, a railway bridge was blown up in Zaporozhye region, and a similar attack on June 22 targeted tracks in Donetsk region, derailing 14 wagons of a Russian freight train.
The railway near the town of Chuguevsk in Ukraine’s Kharkov Region was blown up during the night, Itar-Tass reports, citing the country’s Interior Ministry. Explosions damaging the rails occurred around 2 am local time, not long before a passenger train from the Russian city of Adler to Kiev passed.
“The vigilance of railroad workers made it possible to avert the accident,” the ministry’s statement says.
Traffic along the damaged part of the railway was restored by 8:55 am local time.
28 June 2014
The people's militia of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic gained control of a military unit guarding a plant that destroys and recycles explosives in Donetsk on Saturday.
Control of the plant was gained through negotiation with the guarding unit, who were given the option of joining forces with the militia or returning home.
While some members left, others stayed and have until Monday to make a final decision on whether they want to join the Donetsk People's Republic militia forces or return home.
Ukrainian authorities on Saturday blocked Mauricio Ampuero, correspondent and presenter for RT Spanish, from entering Ukraine. Ampuero was heading for the eastern Ukrainian city of Donetsk, where he previously covered anti-Kiev protests in April. According to the correspondent, a Ukrainian border guard told him that he was being banned from entering for “being a journalist of a Russian channel.”
"Deportado, por ser periodista de un canal ruso" me dice un militar antes de expulsarme de #Ucrania. pic.twitter.com/PwLCLkpsMW
— Mauricio Ampuero (@MauricioAmpuero) June 28, 2014
The Ukrainian army attempted to take control of the Krasny Partisan border checkpoint, the Lugansk People’s Republic’s authorities said, as cited by ITAR-TASS. They added that the Ukrainian forces are being deployed to the city of Schastye and Metallist village near Lugansk. Two Grad rocket launchers and 12 infantry combat vehicles were stationed there, the authorities added.
The Ukrainian army is not committed to the ceasefire declared by the Ukrainian President, said the head of the Supreme Council of the Lugansk People’s Republic, Aleksey Karyakin, at a media conference.
“Even after an agreement at [the highest] level Ukrainian troops <…> aren’t reacting to the president of Ukraine’s statements and continue their activity," against local militia, he said.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry has refused Russia’s humanitarian help, offered on Friday and intended for the southeastern part of the country, according to the ministry’s press-service.
The refusal was based on the “uncertainty of its final destination,” it said. "Given the fact that the Donetsk and Lugansk region, as well as the Autonomous Republic of Crimea are an integral part of Ukraine… citizens of Ukraine on this territory in principle cannot have the status of refugees,” the ministry said.
Right Sector fighters are replenishing the National Guard’s Aydar squad, which was destroyed by eastern militia forces earlier in June, said the head of the Supreme Council of the Lugansk People’s Republic, Aleksey Karyakin, at a media conference. This is being done “to show that it wasn’t destroyed,” he added.
After self-defense troops eliminated the Aydar squad, which stormed Lugansk on June 17, the Ministry of Defense ordered the break up of the squad. However, the newly elected President Petro Poroshenko reversed this decision.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has prolonged the ceasefire in eastern Ukraine until the evening of June 30, according to the presidential website. The ceasefire will last until 10 p.m. local time on Monday evening.
27 June 2014
Russia is ready to deliver 60 tons of humanitarian help to eastern Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a note to Kiev. The ministry also requested to assist the motor convoy that would deliver the aid by suggesting the best route through the region.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned on Friday that the European Union would respond decisively if there were not quick progress in implementing Ukraine President Petro Poroshenko's peace plan.
"We expect progress in the next hours. If we don't see any steps forward on any of the points then we are also prepared to take drastic measures," she told journalists in Brussels.
The EU signed an historic free-trade pact with Ukraine on Friday and warned that it could impose more sanctions on Moscow unless pro-Russian rebels act to wind down the crisis in the east of the country by Monday. (Reuters)
The Ukrainian army is set for “tough actions” after the end of the truce in southeastern Ukraine, said Ukraine’s Interior Minister Arsen Avakov.
“The country’s armed forces, the National Guard and subunits of the Interior Ministry are set for this kind of solution of the problem,” the press service cited the minister as saying.
Kiev has taken no particular steps to establish a dialogue with the south-east regions about constitutional reforms, said Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a press-conference in Moscow.
“So far, since April 17 [the signing of the Geneva agreement], no urgent steps have been made [by Kiev] to establish a dialogue about constitutional reforms with the participation of all regions. Instead, it was announced that the reform was completed on paper and submitted for consideration to the Verhovnaya Rada [Ukraine parliament],” he said.
Lavrov added that Moscow hopes that the extension of the cease-fire for 72 hours is not just a postponement of Kiev’s “ultimatum” to anti-government activists in southeastern Ukraine. Kiev earlier announced that those who failed to lay down their weapons following the truce in eastern Ukraine “will be destroyed.”
Kiev proposes extending the ceasefire in Ukraine’s south-east for three more days, President Petro Poroshenko told EU leaders in Brussels, ITAR-TASS and Bloomberg reported citing their diplomatic sources.
The prolongation of the truce will allow the two sides of the conflict to continue negotiations on the release of hostages, an EU official told Bloomberg.
The president added that he will decide on further steps concerning the ceasefire upon his return to Kiev on Friday.
"This decision will be taken by me when I return to Ukraine, I will have to conduct consultations with the minister of defense, the defense council," Poroshenko said at the press-conference. "The decision will be taken today."
The week-long ceasefire was scheduled to end at 10pm local time on Friday following its extension by 12 hours earlier in the day.
Poroshenko made this announcement after the signing of the economic part of the Association agreement with the EU.
Self-defense forces have seized a military headquarters in the city of Donetsk after three attacks amid seven hours of heavy fighting, the Ukrainian National Guard’s press service declared. The battalion chief was taken captive, and the rest of the troops were transported to another military HQ “in order to save the military men’s lives.”
The ceasefire announced by Ukraine’s President Petro Poroshenko has ended in the southeast of the country, ITAR-TASS reported. The leader’s act came into force a week ago at 11pm Moscow time (19:00 GMT) and stated that “if any armed attack is carried out on the Ukrainian military headquarters or civilian population, the army will open fire.”
26 June 2014
The Ukrainian military has confirmed that self-defense forces took over an army base in Donetsk after a seven-hour shootout.
The commander of the battalion is now being held captive. The rest of the soldiers have been transferred to another military base.
Four OSCE observers who have been detained since the end of May have now been released, a Donetsk People’s Republic spokesperson told RIA Novosti. The released observers are being transported to Donetsk.
Ruptly’s footage shows cars with the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) logo driving by the Kramatorsk administration building on Thursday.
The OSCE mission has visited the devastated eastern Ukrainian city of Slavyansk to inspect the humanitarian situation there, and will prepare a report to help create an “objective picture” of its state, a member of the mission, Viktor Likhachyov, told LifeNews.
“The picture is grim, there is a lot of destruction. The experts have witnessed signs of mortar shelling, destroyed residential homes and infrastructure. I had seen Slavyansk a month before – it was totally different,” Likhachyov said.
According to the ‘people’s mayor’ of Slavyansk, Vladimir Pavlenko, only some 50 percent of the city’s houses have had their electricity supply restored and the pumps responsible for water supply cannot be restarted without enough electricity.
Forces of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk (DNR) have taken control of an interior troops division in central Donetsk. The DNR's press service said it had learned that the Ukrainian Defense Ministry ordered the military unit to attack DNR forces. Shooting was heard in the area, but there have been no reports of casualties thus far.
However, the National Guard insist they retain control of the division and claim that five militants have been injured in the fighting.
Ukrainian radicals stormed the Tourist Hotel in central Kiev. Several hundred people dressed in camouflage clashed with police and smashed windows and doors. The election of a new head of Ukrainian trade unions was to take place in the building. The hooded young people said they were there to rally and prevent regional officials from their planned "arbitrary actions in the vote."
While the Right Sector officially declared they did not take part in the assault, they voiced their approval of the "activists."
Earlier this week, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the current negotiations on the Ukrainian crisis should not just focus on stopping military actions. "Radical elements like the Right Sector and other radical [groups] are not yet disarmed, despite repeatedly talking about that and basically promising that illegal groups will lay down arms,” he said.
The Ukrainian army shelled with mortars the city of Kramatorsk in the Donetsk region, hitting a residential apartment block, the local militia told Itar-Tass.
"One shell hit a house on the crossing of Dvortsovaya and Yubileynaya streets. The explosion demolished several balconies and shattered windows," the representative of the self-defense forces said. He added that another mortar hit a wastewater treatment plant.
Military clashes are ongoing near Kramatorsk airfield, which is currently controlled by the National Guard, according to the local militia. The militia also claim they have captured two Kiev's APCs.
Clashes between self-defense forces and the Ukrainian army in Donetsk have been ongoing for about an hour, according to RIA Novosti. The local militia reportedly attempted to negotiate with the military for its troops to end the fighting. However, upon failure, the self-defense fighters stormed the army's camp. The local militia said that around 150 Right Sector fighters have arrived at the camp – which houses a large quantity of weapons and ammunition – over the past two days.
A bus evacuated dozens of women and children from Donetsk, where the military operation is ongoing, to the Russian city of Perm on Wednesday. The eastern Ukrainian city has been a target of Ukrainian shellfire, and thousands of people are fleeing the region.
Over 16,000 refugees have been housed in camps, organized by the Russian government. They will also receive noncurrent monetary assistance, the Russian Deputy PM Dmitry Kozak said on Thursday.
The Ukrainian military are barring volunteers, who are trying to help with the evacuation of Slavyansk residents, from the city, one of them told media. According to Pyotr Dudnik, cars loaded with food and medicine are being stopped at National Guard checkpoints. It is impossible to evacuate women and children from the city, where “starvation is imminent.” Slavyansk has received no money transfers to the budget for two months; people have to survive without water, gas and electricity supplies.
Loved ones say goodbye to killed #RossiyaTV journalist http://t.co/0dQVlOOcrd#Ukraine
— Ruptly (@Ruptly) June 26, 2014
A Ukrainian military armored column has approached a settlement 21km from Lugansk in eastern Ukraine, self-defense forces say. It came to stop near Zheltoye settlement before noon, and, according to a spokesman representing the Defense Ministry of the Lugansk People's Republic, the military are “sealing off Lugansk.” The situation is currently calm in the city, and there has been no fighting between self-defense forces and the Ukrainian military so far.
#UKRAINE: Ukr authorities decide 2 revive the previously dissolved "Aidar" battalion,reportedly involved in the Russ journos murder.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) June 26, 2014
Self-defense forces in Donetsk and Lugansk Regions have confirmed they will take part in trilateral talks between Russia, Ukraine and the OSCE, according to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, speaking at a PACE session.
“There’s a confirmation now that half an hour ago they demonstrated interest in participation,” Poroshenko said.
He added that if the key elements of the peace plan are rejected at the June 27 talks, Kiev will make “a very important decision.”
The commander of the Idar battalion, created under the authority of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, ordered the shelling that killed two Russian journalists, stated the Russian investigative committee. Rossiya TV journalists, Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin, died while on professional duty in the Lugansk region in eastern Ukraine on June 17.
Chairman of the Ukrainian Parliament Aleksandr Turchinov admitted that the country’s intelligence agencies had regularly misinformed him on the Russian war scenario. According to his yet-unpublished interview to state media, “Nearly 10 times a month our intelligence reported that a time for Russian military intervention had been scheduled.” Thus, in the early mornings the Ukrainian army was put on a war footing, but the possible military operation didn’t take place.
Turchinov added that Ukraine wasn’t ready for a possible military operation in March, when Crimea was admitted to the Russian Federation. “We could counter the Russian aggression with as many as 5,000 people,” he said.
US Secretary of State John Kerry, after meeting with France's foreign minister, said on Thursday Russia should call on "separatists" in Ukraine to disarm within "the next hours".
"We are in full agreement that it is critical for Russia to show in the next hours, literally, that they're moving to help disarm the separatists, to encourage them to disarm, to call on them to lay down their weapons and to begin to become part of a legitimate process," Kerry told reporters in Paris.
He added that EU leaders would discuss possible sanctions moves on Russia at their summit in Belgium starting Thursday.
"We all agree that they need to be ready. But our preference is not to have to be (in) a sanctions mode. We would like to see a cooperative effort between the United States, Europe and Russia and the Ukrainians," he said. (Reuters)
25 June 2014
The US is ready to roll out new sanctions against Russia if Moscow does not work on stopping the flow of weapons into Ukraine, the US State Department has warned. The new sanctions would target financial, defense, and high-tech industries in Russia.
"We need to see Russia secure its border, stop the flow of fighters and weapons into Ukraine and call on separatists to lay down their arms and release the OSCE hostages," State Department spokeswoman Marie Harf said on Wednesday. "We have additional sanctions ready to go."
About five explosions have been heard near an airfield in Kramatorsk, eastern Ukraine, a self-defense spokesperson told Itar-Tass. Flares were also seen in the sky.
Earlier, shots and explosions were reported around Slavyansk, which is located about 10 km away from Kramatorsk.
Over 23,000 Ukrainian refugees have fled to Russian territory, Russian deputy Prime Minister Olga Golodets said.
“We have set up 262 camps for the temporary accommodation of refugees from Ukraine, and 23,286 people are staying in them," Golodets stated.
“This number is constantly changing because regions are making job offers and some refugees are changing their statuses to Russian citizenship and moving to Russian regions for permanent residence," she added.
The destruction of a Ukrainian helicopter, which took 9 lives on Tuesday, is a tragedy that could’ve been avoided if Kiev had warned the self-defense forces of a cargo flight, Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s Foreign Minister, said.
“Of course, it’s a tragedy,” Lavrov is cited by RIA-Novosti news agency as saying. “Such things should be avoided. But when the people, who are frenzied by fighting, are holding positions around the towns with civilians and they see a helicopter flying…”
“If it was necessary to deliver pharmacy, food or other non-military supplies communication channels [with the opposing party] could’ve been used,” he added.
Vladimir Putin has called for the ceasefire in eastern Ukraine to be extended during phone conversations with Petro Poroshenko, Angela Merkel and Francois Hollande, according to the Kremlin press service.
The Russian president expressed hope that the revocation of the permission to use force in Ukraine voted for by the Federation Council will contribute to the de-escalation of tensions in the region. Putin also suggested that warring sides should release detainees, and set up a formal negotiation process.
7 reported cases of explosions in #Donetsk railways yesterday. No reports of victims.Movement of trains suspended - #Russian media.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) June 25, 2014
No consultations on the process of a peaceful settlement of the conflict between Kiev and the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics are expected any time soon, their leader Aleksandr Boroday said.
“There is no and has not been any truce; the cease-fire has not observed,” he told reporters. “For now I don’t see a possibility of continuing the dialogue. What the contact group has done has no practical meaning.”
Ukrainian, Russian and OSCE representatives gathered in Donetsk on June 23 for talks on a peaceful settlement of the conflict.
Russia is taking “very good care” of refugees from Ukraine by helping them to cross the border and providing proper accommodation, the representative of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Baisa Vak-Voya, has told RT, after visiting a refugee camp in the Rostov region on the Russian side of the border.
"Russia is very favorable. The government is taking care of them very well. They cross the border in a very organized way. Those who have relatives there go to their relatives. Those who don’t go to the government organized tent camp, which is run by the Ministry of Emergency. To be honest, this is one of the most equipped and well-run and professionally managed camp I have seen,” he said.
Russia's emergency ministry says over 16 thousand refugees have been housed in camps in Russia.
President Vladimir Putin has ordered the government to draft measures to help Ukrainian citizens in the conflict zone and who come to Russia.
"I would ask you to think how we can help people, who found themselves in the conflict zone and who come to our territory. It is clear that the volume of refugees is such already that regions have difficulty coping on their own," Putin said at a meeting with government members.
#ATO resumed yesterday in #Semyonovka, near #Slavyansk.Smoke & cloud of dust seen above the village - SelfDefence representative says.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) June 25, 2014
24 June 2014
The US and the UK have warned of further sanctions against Russia unless Moscow takes concrete steps to stop the flow of weapons into Ukraine. The statements were made during a telephone call between President Barack Obama and Prime Minister David Cameron, according to the PM's spokeswoman.
"They noted that while President Putin had called on the separatists to accept the ceasefire, we had yet to see concrete action from Russia to halt the flow of weapons across the Ukrainian border and to stop Russian training of separatist groups.”
The temporary ceasefire in Ukraine should be replaced by a long-term renunciation of violence, Swiss President and OSCE chairperson Didier Burkhalter said after a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday, Itar-Tass reported.
Burkhalter added that the three-party contact group will be traveling to eastern Ukraine again on Wednesday.
The self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic has officially voted for unification with the Lugansk People’s Republic during a session of its supreme assembly.
The leaders of the two adjacent territories agreed to form the Federal State of Novorossiya a month ago, after staging a referendum in which the majority voted to secede from Kiev.
Russia has implied that Kiev deliberately targeted two Russian journalists, who were killed in eastern Ukraine last week.
“There needs to be a thorough investigation of this crime; there is too much evidence that this was a premeditated attack,” said Russia’s UN envoy Vitaly Churkin during a Security Council session on Ukraine in New York.
Russian state television reporter Igor Kornelyuk and sound engineer Anton Voloshin died after being hit by a shell near Slavyansk on June 17.
Russia’s UN envoy Vitaly Churkin has expressed “outrage” over Kiev’s stance on the growing number of refugees, who are crossing the border into Russia to avoid the fighting in eastern Ukraine.
“The lack of co-operation from the Ukrainian foreign ministry in this area is outrageous. We are advocating the removal of obstacles that are preventing the delivering of humanitarian aid, and the provision of corridors that would allow civilians to leave the areas of conflict,” said Churkin during a Security Council meeting on Ukraine.
The Russian diplomat said that more than 450 thousand Ukrainian residents have arrived in Russia’s border region of Rostov.
Ukrainian president calls #Putin decision to revoke military use 'practical step' towards deescalation http://t.co/zbXZngNQlO#Ukraine
— RT (@RT_com) June 24, 2014
A bridge in the Ukrainian town of Novokarlovka, Zaporozhie Region, has been blown up, reported Ukraine Railways. According to the data obtained from the law enforcement agencies, unidentified people detonated the pylons.
Two sections of railroad track have been blown up in Lugansk Region, eastern Ukraine, reports local TSN news. The first explosions happened between Kondrashevskaya-Novaya and Ogorodny Stations, while the second was at Krasnozerovka-Ogorodny. There are no reports as to the extent of the damage.
On Monday, the railroad tracks in Donetsk Region were blown up as a freight train belonging to Russian Railways was passing by. Fourteen freight cars were derailed in what railroad staff believe was an planned detonation.
Rescue services have opened another refugee camp in southern Russia, a local administration representative told RIA Novosti. The camp is located in the village of Kushchevskaya in the north of Krasnodar Krai. The village is on the border with Rostov region, which is taking in the majority of refugees from eastern Ukraine.
One woman was killed and another injured when the Ukrainian army shelled the town of Privolnoe, located in the north of Lugansk region, RIA Novosti quoted a spokesperson of the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk as saying. Also, the assault damaged a coal mine, flooding the premises and disrupting work there. All the people were evacuated from the affected area.
23 June 2014
Gunfire has been heard on the outskirts of Slavyansk, a representative of the self-defense forces told Itar-Tass. It is still not clear which side was firing. Itar-Tass also reported that at around 3 p.m. local time on Monday the Ukrainian army used artillery fire on the nearby village of Semenovka, injuring several self-defense members.
Ukrainian army is shelling the town of Privolnoe, located in the north of Lugansk region, RIA Novosti quoted a spokesperson of self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk as saying. So far the bombing has lasted for about an hour, according to the source. There is no information on the injured yet, but there are reports of damage to buildings.
Russian President, Vladimir Putin, and his US counterpart, Barack Obama, have “discussed in detail the various aspects of the deep internal political crisis in Ukraine and prospects for resolving it,” including the implementation of a peace plan put forward by Ukraine’s new president, Petro Poroshenko.
“Putin stressed the importance of the actual cessation of hostilities and start of direct negotiations between the opposing sides for the normalization of the situation in the south-eastern regions [of Ukraine,]” the Kremlin’s press-service said.
The Russian president also “highlighted the importance of urgent humanitarian issues, including emergency assistance to the affected population,” the press-service added.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Monday that Washington's support for Iraqi security forces will be "intense and sustained" to help them combat a militant insurgency that has swept through the country's north and west.
Kerry said that during talks he had with Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in Baghdad on Wednesday, the Iraqi leader reaffirmed his commitment to a July 1 date for forming a new government.
Washington says it wants to urge Iraqi leaders to form a government that represents the interests of all Iraqis. (Reuters)
Met new #Ukraine Foreign Minister Klimkin. Welcomed President Poroshenko's peace plan. I urge Russia to support it pic.twitter.com/RDNJ7u6bBK
— William Hague (@WilliamJHague) June 23, 2014
More than 40 children have been killed during the military campaign launched by Kiev in the Donbass Region, UNN reported, citing Tatiana Bakhteeva from Ukraine’s Party of the Regions.
“More than 40 children have died from shrapnel wounds,” she said, “The innocent children are being hit by bullets aiming right in their hearts.”
Situations like these are well known in the city of Donetsk, eastern Ukraine, that’s why people with children are very scared there, she added.
According to the latest UN report, at least 356 people, including 257 civilians (of them 14 children), have been killed in the violence since the beginning of the “anti-terrorist” military campaign in Ukraine’s eastern regions of Lugansk and Donetsk.
Russian FM Sergey Lavrov spoke about the necessity of an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine’s southeastern regions in a phone conversation with his German counterpart, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Russia’s Foreign Ministry said.
In the conversation, Lavrov said that a ceasefire was a necessary step to begin constructive dialogue between Kiev’s authorities and the representatives of protesting regions.
Ukraine's newly elected president told German Chancellor Angela Merkel via a phone call, that his June 20 unilateral ceasefire was broken on more than 20 occasions.
“The President of Ukraine informed the German Chancellor that in the last 24 hours, the ceasefire has been broken...in Lugansk and Donetsk regions more than 20 times,” RIA Novosti quotes press release from Poroshenko's office.
Poroshenko also stressed the need for Merkel's personal participation in deescalating the conflict. Merkel in return expressed her support for Poroshenko's action plan.
22 June 2014
The railroad tracks in the Donetsk Region were blown up as the freight train belonging to Russian Railways was passing by, the company said. 14 freight cars were derailed as a result of the incident, with Russian Railways employees on the train avoiding injuries. The company is currently working on specifying the details of the attack.
About 50 people picketed Russia’s general consulate in Kiev, throwing walnuts into the building, the press service of Ukraine’s Interior Ministry said, Itar-Tass reported. Local police said the protesters “did not disturb public order.”
“There were about 60 people,” the press-attaché of the Russian diplomatic mission to Ukraine, Oleg Grishin, told RT. “They were peaceful at first, but now the situation is developing in not a good way: [they] are shouting anti-Russian slogans, trying to break through security and get to the consulate office, bringing tires to the scene. The situation is tense.”
Grishin suggested that the attackers are the same extremists who earlier near Kiev’s Pechersk Lavra monastery and then vandalized Russia’s Sberbank office. Russia’s consulate is located close to the monastery, so Grishin said it is possible that the young men were heading for the consulate.
Extreme nationalists have clashed with police officers outside Kiev’s Pechersk Lavra monastery. A group of about 200 radicals gathered outside the monastery, from where religious activists planned a procession against Ukraine signing the EU Association Agreement and the “anti-terrorist operation” in the southeast of the country. Police blocked access to the Lavra to avoid clashes between the two groups. After that radicals have attacked Russia’s Sberbank office in Kiev. Masked extremists shattered windows with stones and hurled placards. They did not enter the office. Local media reports that security forces were deployed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone conversation with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President François Hollande noted the necessity of immediate negotiations between Kiev and representatives of protesting regions, a statement by the Kremlin website said.
“V. Putin supported the decision of Ukraine’s president Petro Poroshenko to negotiate a plan on peaceful regulation [in Ukraine],” the statement said, adding that the intentions of Ukraine’s president should be supported by an immediate ceasefire.
Kiev’s troops are now firing shelling mortars at the village of Ananyevka near the city of Lugansk, eastern Ukraine, the press service of the People’s Republic of Lugansk reported. No victims have been reported yet.
Due to the fact that the commander of the Ukrainian special forces didn’t try to contact the leadership of the self-defense forces, the ceasefire declared by President Poroshenko unilaterally will not be observed by the anti-government troops.
Italy has asked the Ukrainian authorities to clarify the circumstances, in which Italian photographer Andy Rocchelli was killed in the east Ukrainian city of Slavyansk in May, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs Federica Mogherini said after visiting Cesura, a publication where the deceased journalist worked.
L'abbraccio di #pavia, degli amici e dei parenti per l'addio a Andy #Rocchellihttp://t.co/ylP59wTEP5pic.twitter.com/tlx0jc8er7
— La Provincia Pavese (@provinciapavese) May 30, 2014
“We insist on the continuation of the investigation, which was initiated by the authorities in Kiev, about the facts of the death of Andrea Rokkelli. We deem it necessary to seek clarification on its development,” Mogherini said as she called on Ukraine to punish those responsible.
21 June 2014
Ukraine’s newly elected President Petro Poroshenko announced that he has a “detailed” action “Plan B” as a contingency, if his “Plan A” for peaceful resolution of conflict in eastern Ukraine, which he announced Friday, does not work.
“Peaceful scenario – it is our plan A. But those who expect to use the peace talks only to gain time to regroup, should know that we have a detailed plan B. I am not going to talk about it, because I believe that our peace plan will work," Poroshenko said in a statement on his website, RIA Novosti reports.
Customs officers at the Novoshahtinsk checkpoint, in Rostov region that came under attack from Ukrainian forces on Friday, were supplied with helmets and bulletproof vests, the head of Rostov customs Andrey Belyaev told RIA Novosti.
“We are worried about the safety of the people. We are applying maximum safety measures,” Belyaev said, adding that an action plan has been worked out dealing with similar emergencies. An evacuation plan has also been drawn up.
Belyaev said that other border checkpoints have also taken measures to protect their staff.
Российский пограничный пункт пропуска "Новошахтинск" в Ростовской области подвергся минометному обстрелу с сопреде... pic.twitter.com/IzH31kfDfD
— Русские не сдаются (@RussiansForward) June 21, 2014
President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko in a telephone conversation with OSCE Chairman Didier Burkhalter suggested including OSCE inspectors from the monitoring mission in each of the more than one hundred roadblocks in the country, the website of the president says.
Киев провел консультации с ОБСЕ по реализации плана Порошенко http://t.co/WN1scbB2pOpic.twitter.com/ejBHWOZl2C
— Вера Янько (@VeraYanko) June 21, 2014
"The President noted the need to establish effective monitoring and control of the ceasefire implementation. Poroshenko offered to ensure the presence of inspectors of the OSCE monitoring mission stationed in Ukraine in each of the more than one hundred roadblocks," RIA Novosti reports.
Canada has imposed additional economic sanctions and travel bans against 11 Russian and Ukrainian individuals and one entity, according to the Canadian government’s press-service.
”Russia’s illegal occupation of the Crimean peninsula in Ukraine and provocative military activity remains a serious concern to the international community,” Prime Minister Stephen Harper said in a statement on Saturday. Canada "will continue to increase economic pressure on those responsible for the crisis in Ukraine,” he added.
Forensic investigation has established the causes of the deaths in the Odessa massacre on May 2, Ukraine’s Unian news agency reported citing the head of the local forensics bureau Grygory Krivda.
Out of the 48 killed in the House of Unions nine people died due to carbon monoxide poisoning, two died of external burns, three more died of external and lung burns, five died of lung burns together with unidentified gas poisoning and combustion gases, one died of lung burns and poisoning by unidentified gases. The largest group of people – 14 – was killed by inhaling unidentified gas, smoke and evaporations. Six more people died of gunshot wounds, eight died of wounds received after falling from height.
Ukrainian refugees in Rostov region asked the representatives of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Russia to help organize a “humanitarian corridor for Lugansk self-defense and to evacuate the children”, RIA Novosti reported them as saying.
"It is necessary for your observers to stand there, with them standing there they will not dare to bomb us," said one of the refugees.
Several hundred eastern Ukrainians staying in a refugee camp on the Russian-Ukrainian border were on Friday saved by Russian Border Guards from being hit by mortar shells from Ukraine, a local security official told RIA Novosti.
“Taking into account the threat to the people’s lives due to shelling from the Ukrainian side, border guards decided to apply simplified border crossing rules and led people to temporary refugee centers [located] at a safe distance,” Vasily Malaev, a border guard official with the Rostov Region Federal Security Service, told RIA Novosti.
One Russian Custom’s Service employee was injured Friday in the shelling, which took place during clashes between Ukrainian forces and anti-government fighters of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic.
For latest news and analysis, watch RT's Roman Kosarev report
Moscow is concerned that the announcement of the peace plan for eastern Ukraine by Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko comes as Kiev is ramping up its military campaign in the region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
The fact that Poroshenko’s plan does not include negotiations is a “radical deviation” from the Geneva agreements on Ukraine, Lavrov added.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has put Ukraine’s Interior Minister Arsen Avakov and governor of Dnepropetrovsky Region Igor Kolomoysky on international wanted list.
Prosecutors are acting as a criminal case has been opened in Russia over the use of prohibited military means and methods. The case also includes charges of aggravated murder, kidnappings and obstructing journalists’ work.
“The investigation is working to establish all the names of officers and soldiers of Ukraine’s Armed Forces, the National Guard and Right Sector militants who were involved in the punitive action against civilians in southeastern Ukraine,” the committee said.
Earlier, Moscow stated that Kiev's military operation in the east has claimed lives of over 100 civilians. According to the Investigative Committee, starting from April 12, Avakov and Kolomoysky organized and managed the military operation carried out by the Ukrainian military, the National Guard and Right Sector armed fighters, and the Dnepr special forces of the Ukrainian Interior Ministry, created and financed by Kolomoysky.
The Ukrainian air force carried out an airstrike in the village of Semenovka in the Donetsk region, around 23:00 GMT, a source of the self-defense forces told Itar Tass. “They used incendiary bombs," the source added.
The information has not yet been confirmed by the People's Republic of Donetsk. There is no information on casualties.
20 June 2014
OSCE Chairperson-in-Office, Didier Burkhalter, welcomed the announcement of a ceasefire by the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko.
The ceasefire, Burkhalter says, constitutes an “important chance” for sustainable de-escalation in the eastern regions of Ukraine.
Burkhalter: Porošenkov plan šansa za smirenje krize pic.twitter.com/OekglxHlLD
— Htc One Vesti (@VestiHtcOne) June 20, 2014
“It would hopefully open up a window of opportunity for dialogue and for putting into effect the peace plan of Poroshenko", Burkhalter said.
Burkhalter confirmed that the OSCE is ready to assist the Ukrainian side in implementing measures outlined in the plan.
Shelling of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk by Ukrainian units stopped after lasting all afternoon, locals told RIA Novosti. However, from time to time shots are fired on the outskirts of Kramatorsk.
Police reserves have been deployed in a number of police stations in Rostov region after the Ukrainian army shelled a Russian checkpoint of Novoshakhtinsk.
"In some areas of the Rostov region police reserves were placed on alert to ensure order at the [Russian-Ukrainian] border," regional Internal Ministry press service told RIA Novosti.
According to Russian children’s rights ombudsman Pavel Astakhov's tweet a bus carrying children was shot at by Ukrainian forces in eastern Ukraine.
На Российско-Украинской границе при переезде в Ростовскую область обстрелян автобус с детьми. Водитель сумел вырваться из-под обстрела.
— Павел Астахов (@RFdeti) June 20, 2014
"As the bus with children was fired on as it was crossing to Rostov region. The driver managed to escape from the fire," wrote the children's ombudsman. Astakhov did not provide any details.
The Russian Investigative Committee is prosecuting the governor of Dnepropetrovsk region Igor Kolomoysky and Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov, for war negligence, committee spokesman Vladimir Markin told ITAR-TASS.
Markin said that the duo are being prosecuted for the “use of prohibited means and methods of warfare, aggravated murder, obstructing the work of journalists and kidnapping,” adding that shortly Russia will place both on the international wanted list.
The spokesman also said that almost 1500 victims have suffered the consequences of their decisions. Markin said the investigative team so far has questioned 2,350 refugees that ended up in Russia, 1420 of which, including 208 minors, have been recognized as victims of Ukraine's military operation in the south-east of the country.
Владимир Маркин: По делу о применении запрещенных средств в конфликте на Украине признаны ... http://t.co/uPxrDoHDUnpic.twitter.com/oLMJCyacPc
— Коноваленко Татьяна (@tanya_anitey) June 21, 2014
“Over 1000 people have written statements to the Russian investigators addressed to the International Criminal Court and the European Court of Human Rights," Markin said, reminding that the investigation into Avakov and Kolomoysky was opened on June 18.
The investigative committee believes that Avakov and Kolomoysky from April onwards, organized and oversaw their subordinates who were responsible for deliberately killing civilians by the armed forces of Ukraine, including members of the National Guard and the Right Sector, as well as fighters from the special battalion "Dnepr" created and funded Kolomoiskiy.
In addition, the investigation believes that Avakov and Kolomoysky could be responsible for kidnapping Russian journalists.
Russia’s Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin criticized the report circulated by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights released on Wednesday saying that it was not objective.
The report “completely repeats the narrative of the Kiev authorities” and “glosses over government shelling," said Churkin speaking at a press conference on Friday. “There is no hint of objectivity in the report," he added.
Happening now Amb Churkin's press-conference. Watch live on http://t.co/2XuWBKUUdNpic.twitter.com/BhcrDiBJ6a
— Russian Mission UN (@PressRUSUN) June 20, 2014
Speaking about the revised draft of a UN Security Council resolution on Ukraine that Russia offered on Tuesday, Russia’s envoy said that the Western states are not interested in it.
“We came to the conclusion that our Western colleagues were not interested in the draft," he said, adding that Moscow sees “no prospect for that draft to develop.”
A Russian customs service employee was injured in mortar fire coming from the Ukrainian side at a checkpoint in Novoshakhtinsk in Rostov region, Itar-tass cited a spokesman of the service.
Пункт пропуска «Новошахтинск» пострадал от минометного огня со стороны Украины http://t.co/OUJMlUku4mpic.twitter.com/uYk2d9iB9L
— Aleksandr Novak (@NovakAleksandr) June 20, 2014
He has been taken to a hospital where the doctors evaluated his condition as serious. He was hurt as clashes erupted between self-defense forces and Ukrainian military joined by the National Guard, who launched mortar fire directed at the checkpoint.
Donetsk miners are enlisting for a self-defense “division” amid the expanding Kiev’s military operation, so as “to protect their homes and families,” the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic said on its Twitter account.
According to the statement, more than 500 people have already joined the “miners’ division.”
Washington has included the leaders of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic and Lugansk People’s Republic on its list of sanctioned individuals, Russia’s Finance Ministry said.
Among those included on the sanctions list are the head of the Donetsk People’s Republic, Denis Pushilin, Lugansk People’s Republic head Valery Bolotov, the “people’s mayor” of Slavyansk, Igor Girkin-Strelkov and the city’s former “people’s mayor,” Vyacheslav Ponomarev.
The government of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic (DPR) has asked the UN to recognize it as a sovereign state, senior DPR official Vladimir Makovich told Russia’s Itar-Tass news agency. Serbia and South Ossetia are among the countries who have asked for recognition separately, he added.
Odessa police have foiled a terrorist attack which was planned during a protest near Russia’s consulate in Odessa on June 16, city police chief Ivan Katerinchuk was quoted as saying by local media.
The assailants were to plant a homemade explosive device in the crowd and explode it from a safe distance after provoking a fight between police and protesters, the police chief said. The destruction radius of the bomb was estimated at 15 meters.
The assailants have been detained, police said, adding that an MP from the right-wing Svoboda (Freedom) party had called for their release.
Ukrainian military reportedly reinforce roadblocks on border with #Crimea - Ukr. officials.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) June 19, 2014
19 June 2014
Self-defense forces of the Donetsk's Republic claim to have taken down a Ukrainian Su-25 plane in the battle for the village of Yampol in the north of Donetsk region, militia headquarters told RIA Novosti.
"We have brought down a Su-25 and also destroyed one tank and several BMD airborne combat vehicle” self-defense forces said.
The battle for Yampol lasted all day on June 19. Ukrainian army used self-propelled howitzers and mortars, tanks, armored personnel carriers, fighter jets and helicopters.
Earlier estimates by Kiev operations staff, Vladislav Seleznev, claimed the Ukrainian security services lost four people in the battle while militia suffered the loss of 200 fighters. Yet self-defense forces told RIA Novosti that the casualty figures given by Seleznev “to put it mildly, highly exaggerated."
Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone conversation with newly elected Ukrainian leader, Petro Poroshenko, stressed the urgent need to stop the military operation in south-eastern Ukraine, “in order to achieve a viable solution to the conflict,” his spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Itar-Tass.
The Ukrainian President’s office said in a statement that Poroshenko outlined the key pillars of a 14 point plan aimed at deescalating the situation.
"President outlined the key positions and schedule for implementing the peace plan on the situation in the east of the country ... The Ukrainian leader said that ... he relies on the support of the peace plan"
Earlier on Thursday, Poroshenko met with Kiev-installed representatives of Donetsk and Lugansk regions, in which he presented his peace plan to resolve the situation in eastern Ukraine. Poroshenko promised to order a ceasefire and declare amnesty so that local self-defense fighters can lay down their arms, and if they wish, leave Ukraine.
“The President voluntarily renounces the ability to appoint governors and heads of regional state administrations,” and has agreed to hold early local elections, the presidential press service said.
Despite the promises of a ceasefire however, the humanitarian crisis in eastern Ukraine is worsening day by day, amid disruption of water supplies and electricity, while emergency medical aid is unavailable due to gas shortages as fighting continues in some areas.
In Rome: action under the European Union mission: Hands off Ukraine. The EU - an accomplice of the Nazis in Ukraine pic.twitter.com/uy7PSonQ9g
— AntiMaydan Ukraine (@AntiMaydanUA) May 13, 2014
Russian President Vladimir Putin has discussed the potential cost of Russia's gas dispute with Ukraine for Europe in a telephone call with his German and French counterparts, the Kremlin said in statement on Thursday.
In a three-way call with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, Putin also voiced "serious concern" over Ukraine's military operation against an uprising in the east, it said.
"They also discussed the potential consequences for Europe's energy security and economy of the failure of negotiations with Kiev on the settlement of its debt for Russian gas deliveries," the Kremlin said. (Reuters)
The OSCE has re-established contact with two teams of observers that went missing in eastern Ukraine last month, a spokesman for the democracy watchdog said on Thursday.
"We now have contact with both teams," a spokesman for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe said, adding the contacts had been re-established in the past 48 hours.
"We know that the first ones, the ones that were taken longer ago are alive and unharmed," the spokesman said. Asked about the second group, the spokesman said: "They are fine as well."
The security and rights watchdog lost contact with the international monitoring teams late in May amid intense fighting between the Ukrainian army and pro-Russian fighters engulfing the eastern flatlands of the former Soviet republic. (Reuters)
Russia has submitted a revised draft resolution on the crisis in Ukraine to the UN Security Council that includes references emphasizing the Security Council's commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said.
He added that the conflict in Ukraine in still escalating and the refugee flow is increasing.
"Unfortunately, despite the Ukrainian authorities' statements on their willingness to start the dialogue, reports prove that the de-escalation continues in the country," he said.
Self-defense forces in Lugansk have “practically destroyed” Ukraine’s Aydar battalion, the head of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic, Valery Bolotov, told reporters. He added that some Ukrainian troops were taken prisoner.
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says he will sign an association agreement with the European Union on June 27 and will also send his new foreign minister to Luxembourg next week to lay out a peace plan for the east to EU ministers.
Referring to plans to sign the association agreement, Poroshenko said: "That for which we have waited for so long will take place next week." (Reuters)
The latest news from Slavyansk in the report of RT's Roman Kosarev
Russian has resumed its military buildup near Ukraine with "several thousand" more troops deployed, NATO’s Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen said.
“I can confirm that we now see a new Russian military buildup – at least several thousand more Russian troops deployed to the Ukrainian border, and we see troop maneuvers in the neighborhood of Ukraine,” Rassmussen told reporters in London.
“If they’re deployed to seal the border and stop the flow of weapons and fighters that would be a positive step. But that’s not what we’re seeing.”
#OSCE spokesperson says org. 've managed to make contact w/ the 2 missing groups of observers in #DPR & #LPR. "They're fine",official says.
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) June 19, 2014
The airplane with the bodies of Rossiya TV’s journalists Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin on board has landed Thursday morning at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo Airport. The funerals for the victims of Ukraine’s army Tuesday shelling near Lugansk are scheduled to take place Friday, June 20.
18 June 2014
The UN has not discussed the possibility of extending its human rights mission in Ukraine post the September deadline said Farhan Haq, the deputy UN Secretary General spokesman, Itar-Tass reports.
In early June, Ukraine's Foreign Ministry sent a written request to UN chief Ban Ki-moon asking him to extend a UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine for 3 more months.
There have been reports the Ukrainian military has demanded a ransom for the dead militia men during a temporary ceasefire and exchange of dead and the wounded between Ukrainian forces and Self-Defense units of the People's Republic of Lugansk (PRL).
“They have asked $5,000 for each of the dead,” Valery Bolotov, the head of the People’s Republic of Lugansk told reporters.
Bolotov also noted that Kiev's side “violated the conditions of the temporary ceasefire,” to allow the exchange of the corpses. “They fired at our roadblocks – artillery and mortar fire." He also said that the military moved its armored vehicles which also violates provisions of the ceasefire.
The head of the PRL, said that self-defense forces have fulfilled all of the obligations.
Bolotov says that they managed to get 9 bodies and 12 wounded militia men, but the Ukrainian side he says “took over 100 of the dead near the village of Metallist.”
The Ukrainian Parliament is considering a new bill that could pave the way for the government to create its own gas transportation operator. Under its provisions, EU and US companies could own up to 49 percent of the stock, RIA Novosti reports.
The Ukrainian army intends to purchase new armored vehicles to deploy them in operations in the east of the country, said Vladimir Chepovoy, a spokesman of the National Security and Defense of Ukraine.
"The Armed Forces of Ukraine will hold a comparative test of BTR, BTR E3E1 and 4E ‘Bucephalus’ [and] will purchase about 1 thousand units,” Chepovoy told RBK-Ukraine.
The self-proclaimed People's Republic of Lugansk has creates its own Committee for State Security (KGB) and counterintelligence agency SMERSH, that would be involved in locating those responsible for the deaths of Russian journalists, the head of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Lugansk Valery Bolotov told reporters.
“Beginning from today we are announcing the formation of the State Security Committee of Lugansk's Republic, one of the units of which will be SMERSH, the functions of which will be to battle spies and saboteurs,” Bolotov said.
SMERSH was the acronym used for special counterintelligence units used by the Soviet Army during World War II.
The UN has acknowledged in a new report that members of Ukrainian nationalist groups, including Right Sector, took part in the Odessa May 2 massacre and beat anti-government protesters trying to escape the burning Trade Union House building, the Russian Foreign Ministry said.
“The circumstances of this tragedy are so outrageous that it is impossible to cover up the tracks, despite all the attempts of Kiev. The [UN Human Rights Monitoring] mission had to acknowledge that the Ukrainian authorities, including the Interior Ministry and the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), were unwilling to cooperate with it, and the fact that the overwhelming majority of those detained in connection with the May 2 events are pro-federalization activists,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement after studying the recently released report by the UN mission in Ukraine.
Only two criminal cases have since been launched against the radicals who attacked the anti-government protesters’ camp and in both cases the suspects “got off” with a house arrest, the Foreign Ministry said. Most of the nearly 50 people who were killed in the May 2 clashes and fire were anti-government protesters.
However, the new UN report still largely reflects the “one-sided and politically motivated interpretation of the events” surrounding Kiev’s military operation in eastern Ukraine, the Foreign Ministry said. The only information on the fallout of the so-called “anti-terror operation” highlighted in the report is the one “fitting the ready-made conclusions,” with no evaluation given to the Kiev forces’ use of air strikes, heavy artillery and armored vehicles against the civilian population, it said.
According to the ministry, the “hypocritical recommendation” to Kiev to continue with the military operation “in line with international norms and standards” can be likened to an “indulgence” for further escalation of the conflict and more atrocities against the civilian population with impunity.
At least 356 people, including 257 civilians, have died since the beginning of the “anti-terrorist” operation in Ukraine’s eastern regions of Lugansk and Donetsk, according to UN calculations. There were 14 children among the dead.
The results prepared by the UN special commission in Ukraine have been presented by Gianni Magazzeni, head of European Department of the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights.
#Lavrov: Deaths of #Russia journalists in #Ukraine give signal for launching deescalation http://t.co/KgNMzvOp1r
— MFA Russia (@mfa_russia) June 18, 2014
Having established a temporary ceasefire, Ukrainian troops and the pro-federalist self-defense forces in the Lugansk region have conducted an exchange of dead bodies of each other’s fighters. Witnesses claim the Ukrainian side collected over 100 coffins with bodies, many of them reportedly killed during the siege of the Lugansk airport, Itar-TASS reported.
Donbass miners give Pres Poroshenko 24hrs to stop military op in E. #Ukrainehttp://t.co/VEWkRrxJ8e via @ReportnRomanpic.twitter.com/DiwoZ0FENC
— RT (@RT_com) June 18, 2014
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov has said that Tuesday’s explosion at a pipeline in the country’s Poltava region had been caused by a bomb placed under a concrete support, Reuters said.
“We assume that the explosive device was placed under a concrete block supporting the pipeline and that there were two explosions,” Avakov said. Prime Minister Arseny Yatsenyuk on Wednesday ordered security to be strengthened at pipeline installations.
Ukraine’s government is ready to declare a short-term, unilateral ceasefire in the east if pro-federalization forces immediately disarm and surrender, while allowing fighters to flee the country, President Pyotr Poroshenko told journalists in Kiev.
"The [peace] plan begins with me giving the unilateral ceasefire order. Immediately after that we expect to get support for the peace plan from other participants of the developments in the Donbass region within the shortest timeframe," Poroshenko said, without specifying the exact timing for implementing the plan. All buildings captured by pro-federalization forces should be released and the captives should be freed immediately, he said.
Those who lay down their arms and are found not guilty of committing serious crimes would be offered an amnesty, while “the mercenaries will be allowed to leave the country unarmed.”
Poroshenko said that the ceasefire would be very short, so the self-defense forces in the east should really hurry up to manage to disarm in time. At the same time, Poroshenko expressed hope that the proposal would be welcomed by a “large number of citizens” of the rebellious Donbass region.
The key to realization of the plan Poroshenko sees in sealing off the border with Russia, as there are “huge risks” that the ceasefire would be used by “criminals,” Poroshenko said.
The 14 steps that would follow the peace plan are going to be made public within days, he announced.
Over 100 civilians, including Russian and Italian citizens, have been killed during the Kiev military operation in eastern Ukraine, Russia’s Investigative Committee said.
“During this operation and the shelling of Slavyansk, Kramatorsk, Donetsk, Mariupol and other towns in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, Grad multiple rocket launcher systems, unguarded aircraft rockets with pellet warheads, and other types of heavy offensive weaponry were used intentionally to kill an unlimited number of civilians in violation of international law,” Markin said.
“As a result, over 100 civilians were killed, including two Russian citizens performing their professional activities – journalists Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin, human rights activist Andrey Mironov and Italian journalist Andrea Rocchelli,” he said.
Ukraine's ambassador to the UN, Yury Sergeyev, accused the deceased Russian journalists of being responsible for their own deaths, claiming they were wearing no ‘PRESS’ identification.
Sergeyev accused Rossiya TV channel’s Igor Kornelyuk and Anton Voloshin of being in the middle of a “group of terrorists” attacking Ukrainian troops.
“Ten terrorists were killed in the firefight, many were wounded and only in hospital they found out that one of them is a Russian journalist,” Sergeyev said.
Kiev’s authorities had “recommended all journalists to wear special signs and armor,” but Russian reporters “wore none and worked at their own risk,” he added.
In fact, Vesti TV channel cameraman Victor Denisov confirmed that all Russian journalists he met were wearing special “PRESS” signs.
On the video published by RT earlier it can be seen clearly that there was no firefight and that the Russian journalists were accompanying a group of civilians trying to escape the war zone. A direct hit by a mortar into a group of people left no chance for anyone to survive.
While reporter Igor Kornelyuk died of fatal injuries in the pro-federalization forces’ hospital, the body of Anton Voloshin was torn to pieces, so for several hours he was considered to be missing, until his remains were identified.
Earlier, Ukraine’s Security Service also accused the killed journalists of having no accreditation from the country’s Foreign Ministry, but the necessity to obtain accreditation was actually canceled back in 2011.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, discussed a possible ceasefire in eastern Ukraine and the deaths of two Russian journalists there in a late night telephone conversation, the Kremlin said.
The conversation "touched on the theme of a possible ceasefire in the area of military action in southeastern Ukraine", the Kremlin said in a statement.
It also said Putin had expressed his concern over the deaths of two Russian state television journalists, who were killed in shelling in clashes between Kiev and anti-government forces near the eastern city of Lugansk.
Poroshenko expressed his condolences and assured Putin there would be an investigation and measures would be taken to protect journalists. (Reuters)
Introduction of martial law on the territory of Donetsk and Lugansk regions will only lead to more violence and would be the worst scenario for Ukraine, Russia's permanent representative to the UN Vitaly Churkin said, RIA Novosti reports.
Russian reaction follows a move by political forces inside Ukrainian parliament that are finalizing a draft bill that would impose martial law in south-eastern Ukraine, pending President Petro Poroshenko's approval.
Martial law, Churkin said would lead to “more violence”, calling such a move a “bad start” for Poroshenko, who instead of a dialogue has chosen “military campaign.”
17 June 2014
The United Nations Security Council has adopted a statement condemning the killing of journalists in Ukraine and has called for an investigation.
“The Security Council calls for a thorough investigation of all violent incidents, including against journalists," Current chairman of UN Security Council, Vitaly Churkin said.
According to Churkin's statement, members of the Council voiced “concern” over numerous detentions and attacks on the press in Ukraine, as well as issued condolences to victims of those who perished covering the events in Ukraine, including an Italian photo journalist killed on May 25.
At least 30 members of self-defense forces have been killed or injured in the Lugansk region in eastern Ukraine so far, Vladislav Seleznyov, the spokesman for the military operation against the pro-autonomy protesters in eastern Ukraine, wrote on his Facebook page.
The radical Pravy Sektor (Right Sector) group has formed a battalion in honor of Aleksandr Muzychko, the deceased leader of the group, Dmitry Yarosh, told UNN news channel.
The battalion will be formed in the city of Rovno, western Ukraine.
Notorious Ukrainian right-wing militant leader Muzychko, also known as Sashko Bilyi, was shot dead during a police raid against his gang in March by Ukrainian police.
More than 1,500 refugees from Ukraine’s south-east have arrived in the Moscow region, the regional governor’s press service reports.
He added that at least 2264 Ukrainian citizens have called the Moscow Federal Migration Service requesting asylum.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has opened a criminal case into the latest arrest of two journalists from Russian Zvezda TV channel.
Correspondent Evgeny Davydov and sound engineer Nikita Konashenkov were detained in the Donetsk region on Saturday while they were on their way to Dnepropetrovsk Airport for a flight back to Moscow. The journalists were freed on Monday afternoon.
Прямое попадание в один из медпунктов #ДНР в #Славянск / Direct hit on one of the aid posts of rebels in #Slavyanskpic.twitter.com/ACepS19Rx0
— Андрей Краснощёков (@a_krasnoschekov) June 17, 2014
Ukrainian Interior Minister Arsen Avakov has denied reports that the country’s security forces have used phosphorus bombs during a military operation in Eastern Ukraine, RIA Novosti said. Earlier reports said the bombs, which have been banned by the Geneva Convention, were used against civilians in the village of Semyonovka near Slavyansk.
16 June 2014
Head of the Russian State Duma's International Affairs Committee, Aleksey Pushkov, tweeted that there is no such thing as unilateral demarcation of the border, calling such a move by Ukrainian authorities “illegal.”
Если в Киеве не в курсе: односторонней демаркации границы не бывает. Это совместное действие. Граница, проведенная Киевом, не будет законной
— Алексей Пушков (@Alexey_Pushkov) June 16, 2014
The reaction followed the decision by Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council to demarcate the country's border with Russia on a unilateral basis.
A number of decisions aimed at strengthening security on the Ukraine-Russia border were made on Monday, the council's coup-appointed secretary Andrey Parubiy said, including the construction of facilities on the Ukrainian side, along the entire border.
Ukraine's President Poroshenko, who activates the council's decisions, insisted these measures should be applied as soon as possible, Parubiy said.
Around 500 Maidan supporters held a rally in front of the Russian consulate in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkov.
Главная мысль акции под консульством #РФ в #Харьков'е: "Отъ**итесь!" #Харків#Майдан#Вечеpic.twitter.com/C3vEeQw8K3
— StudMedia Kharkov (@StudMedia) June 16, 2014
Carrying Ukrainian national insignias, the activists repeatedly sang the national anthem of Ukraine, calling on Moscow to remain neutral in the ongoing conflict.
Russian diplomatic staff did not address the crowd. The event was guarded by local law enforcement officers.
Russia will present a new version of the draft resolution on Ukraine at the UN Security Council meeting, Russian Ambassador to the UN Vitaly Churkin told journalists before heading to the council's closed meeting. The attack on the Russian embassy in Kiev will also be brought up at the meeting, Churkin said.
Ukrainian authorities plan to suggest a short ceasefire during which a "corridor" for the militia to leave the country will be organized, Ukraine's first deputy PM Vitaly Yarema told Ukraine's ICTV channel. Speaking about President Poroshenko's plan, the minister said that "they will be offered amnesty, except those people who have committed serious crimes.” Yarema added that if the self-defense members do not accept Kiev's offer, "the operation will be continued, but it will be carried out at a different quality level."
Ukraine's National Security and Defense Council has decided to demarcate the country's border with Russia on a unilateral basis, the council's coup-appointed secretary Andrey Parubiy reported on Monday. A number of decisions aimed at strengthening security on the Ukraine-Russia border were made, he said. This includes the construction of facilities on the Ukrainian side along the whole border, not just in the eastern territories where the military crackdown is being carried out. Ukraine's President Poroshenko, who activates the council's decisions, insisted these measures should be applied as soon as possible, Parubiy said.
Ukrainian police have detained four protesters carrying explosives and a knife outside the Russian consulate in the city of Odessa. The four were involved in brawl in which several people were injured, ITAR-TASS reports. Nearly 200 people, including some wearing symbols of radical group Right Sector, gathered outside the consulate demanding the Russian flag be taken down. The group was confronted by another mob of people who also were there, demanding that police “go fight in Donetsk.”
Ukrainian authorities have handed over two journalists from the Russian Zvezda TV channel previously detained by Kiev troops to the Russian Navy Deputy Attaché Eduard Belashev.
Correspondent Evgeny Davydov and sound editor Nikita Konashenkov were detained in eastern Ukraine by Kiev’s National Guard on their way to Dnepropetrovsk Airport on Saturday.
Ukrainian troops detain Russian journalists on regular basis, claiming that they gather intelligence for militias opposing the government in Kiev.
The negotiations on the release of two Russian journalists from Zvezda TV channel will take place on Monday afternoon in the administration of the city of Dnepropetrovsk, eastern Ukraine, an attaché of the Russian Embassy in Ukraine told RIA Novosti. After the talks it will become clear whether the journalists will be freed, he added.
Correspondent Evgeny Davydov and sound engineer Nikita Konashenkov were taken by Ukraine‘s National Guard in Donetsk Region on Saturday. They were on their way to Dnepropetrovsk Airport for a flight back to Moscow.
15 June 2014
Ukrainian security forces will fully control the country's eastern border with Russia next week, Ukraine's acting Defense Minister Mikhail Koval told Ukrainian television on Sunday, saying that the president's "clear objectives in this regard" will be performed "from A to Z.” According to the minister, the Ukrainian side has closed almost 250 km of its state borders. "In just a few days we will physically close the whole state border with our armed forces units and will create a buffer zone," announced Koval.
People in Ukraine's second-largest city of Kharkov took to the streets on Sunday to march in support of Russia. Kharkov is located in the northeast of the country, and the situation there has remained calm. Organizers of the Sunday rally said the march was inspired by local citizens who are outraged by the attack on the Russian embassy in Kiev. Hundreds of people chanted slogans such as "No way to fascism" and carried posters in support of the self-proclaimed people's republics.
(video courtesy of YouTube user Иосиф Великий)
Participants of Sunday's public assembly at Kiev's Maidan Square called on Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko to dissolve the current parliament and announce new elections for the country's Verkhovnaya Rada. According to UNIAN news agency, several hundred people gathered at the third public assembly in central Kiev ahead of a rally in favor of parliament's re-election and "clearance," planned for June 17. President Poroshenko previously stated that parliament should be re-elected, as its current political forces are not supported by the country's population.
Over 100 people, including both self-defense troops and civilians, have been killed in the past two days on the territory of self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk, the head the Republic Valery Bolotov said.
Speaking about the situation in the town of Schastye, Lugasnk Region, he said National Guard fighters took the town on Saturday with “both their and ours” [people] being killed and injured, as well as innocent civilians.
“We have documented facts that they [National Guard fighters] broke windows and shot at houses through windows, not caring about those who were inside,” Bolotov said as a press conference.
All military units in Lugansk and in the regions to the town's east have sided with the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Lugansk (LNR), its leader Valery Bolotov reported at a press conference on Sunday. Bolotov said that only units based at the airport did not side with LNR, but "talks to persuade those are being conducted." He also denied reports that a group of Dnepropetrovsk troopers had left Lugansk International Airport.
Grad multiple rocket launchers have been deployed 40km away from the city of Lugansk, the press service of the self-declared Lugansk People’s Republic told ITAR-TASS.
“[The town of] Schastye is in the range of Grad, but Lugansk is out of range of the rocket launchers,” the service said.
Moscow will react to the offensive language Ukraine’s acting FM Andrey Deshchitsa used in referring to Russia’s President Vladimir Putin, but first Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov should “react,” presidential spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said.
Speaking to the RSN radio, Konstantin Dolgov, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s commissioner for human rights, said that Andrey Deshchitsa chanting “Putin’s a f**ker” “only shows the political culture - or lack of culture - of the people who hold power in Kiev.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov expressed outrage over the vandalizing of the Russian embassy in Kiev on Saturday in a phone conversation with his French counterpart Laurent Fabius, the ministry reported.
In a separate conversation with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Lavrov said Russia was concerned with the failure of the UN Security Council to condemn the attack on the embassy due to the blockage by Western members of a Russian draft resolution to that effect.
Earlier on Sunday the office of the EU high representative for foreign affairs commented on the attack on the Russian embassy, saying Ukraine is obliged to provide security for foreign diplomats under the Vienna Convention.
“The EU condemns the violence against the Russian diplomatic mission,” said HRVP spokesperson Maja Kocijancic in a statement.
Meanwhile Kiev police said they had launched a hooliganism case against three people detained over their participation in the anti-Russian protest at the embassy.
The head of the Russian State Duma's International Affairs Committee, Aleksey Pushkov, believes the attack on the Russian embassy in Kiev was pre-planned.
"Otherwise, where did the protesters get the firecrackers?!” he wrote on Twitter. "It was not a spontaneous action, but a thoroughly planned one."
14 June 2014
Several provocateurs responsible for the attack on the Russian embassy in Kiev have been detained, Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said early on Sunday. It added that the authorities are taking all measures to ensure the safety of the diplomatic premises.
Western countries of the UNSC blocked Russia's draft resolution to condemn the attack on the Russian embassy in Kiev, Itar-Tass quoted a source as saying.
Ukrainian troops have destroyed two self-defense checkpoints around Lugansk, military operation spokesperson Vladislav Seleznev said on his Facebook page.
The situation in front of the Russian embassy in Kiev has normalized, Russia 24 TV channel reported, adding that 200-300 demonstrators remain at the site.
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrey Deshchitsa and head of the Interior Ministry Arsen Avakov have arrived at the Russian embassy to stabilize the situation, the Ukrainian government's website stated.
Two Ukrainian SU-25 fighter jets fired missiles at water treatment facilities near the towns of Slavyansk and Kramatorsk, according to Slavyansk self-defense forces. They added that "no opposition has ever been there." The scale of damage to the facilities has not yet been reported, but there are already problems with water supply in the region.
About 200 people gathered in front of Ukraine’s embassy in Moscow, Itar-Tass reported. The demonstrators gathered to protest the attack on the Russian embassy in Kiev. The protesters also voiced their opposition towards Kiev’s actions in eastern Ukraine. Some demonstrators carried signs reading, “Free the journalists” and “We won’t forgive for the dead children.”
On Saturday, a few hundred Ukrainian protesters overturned several diplomatic cars and piled up tires to block entry into the building. They also threw stones, smoke grenades, eggs, and paint at the premises.
The anti-Russia protest continues outside the Russian embassy in Kiev.
Акция у здания посольства России в Киеве продолжается pic.twitter.com/oN2JceZLN9
— RT на русском (@RT_russian) June 14, 2014
Molotov cocktails at Russian embassy, kyiv pic.twitter.com/KtsOwf2XTR
— Oliver Carroll (@olliecarroll) June 14, 2014
Pro-Kiev forces in Ukraine killed 250 opposition activists in the country's southeast on Saturday, Ukraine's acting Defense Minister Mikhail Koval told President Petro Poroshenko. According to the minister, the killed "militants" were mostly Russian nationals. Koval did not mention exactly where they were killed. The press service of the self-proclaimed People's Republic of Donetsk has not released a report on the deaths.
The Ukrainian army has launched a counter-offensive for the first time, Petro Poroshenko said.
“You should know that today the Ukrainian army for the first time launched a counter-offensive. Our troops started to press terrorists,” the president said. “I tasked the armed forces of Ukraine to take control of Ukraine’s state border through which terrorists get weapons, equipment, support, and money," he said.
While speaking with US Secretary of State John Kerry, Russia's foreign minister stressed that it is necessary to stop Kiev's anti-government military operation in eastern Ukraine. Lavrov also expressed hope that the US will help create conditions to reach an agreement on the negotiations of gas supplies between Russia and Ukraine.
Following the downing of an Il-76 Ukrainian army transport plane some 12 miles southeast of Lugansk, killing all 49 people on board, political analyst Aleksandar Pavich, told RT Kiev’s foreign backers would “blame Russia.”
“This is supposed to be an escalation on the part of Russia; how did these people manage to down a plane – the equipment must come from Russia. Of course, Ukraine has its own military industry, but they’re going to pin the blame on Russia because the real target is Russia, it’s not even the southeast or the east of Ukraine. So I expect escalation, verbally and otherwise from NATO, Washington, London, Brussels, and Berlin, unfortunately.”
Several vehicles said to be belonging to Russian diplomats have been turned over by Ukrainian protesters near the Russian embassy in Kiev.
Cars of russian diplomats in front of rus embassy in Kyiv pic.twitter.com/mqrTHDyjIM
— Kateryna_Kruk (@Kateryna_Kruk) June 14, 2014
Photos showing the scene of the Il-76 Ukrainian military plane’s crash have emerged on social media.
... pic.twitter.com/yeMwrqNnWf
— Reincarnation. (@TukvaSociopat) June 14, 2014
Ил-76. pic.twitter.com/bfcnPhbk4x
— Антимайдан (@myrevolutionrus) June 14, 2014
A group of 20 armed men has seized Ukrainian Security Service (SBU) building in the city of Krasnodon.
“At night a group of 20 armed men wearing camouflage and masks, broke a lock on a door of Krasnodon’s SBU, located on Lenina, 5, and seized the building,” Tatyana Pogukay, head of the ministry’s regional public relations office, said on Facebook, according to RIA Novosti.
#Ukraine Some #Kiev regime supporters are throwing eggs at the #Russia'n embassy pic.twitter.com/vpwwG9QIzr
— Steiner (@Steiner1776) June 14, 2014
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has declared Sunday, June 15, a day of national mourning for the 49 Ukrainian troops who perished in the downing of Il-76 military transport plane in Lugansk overnight. The plane was hit by a rocket launched by Lugansk self-defense fighters.
Shooting from automatic weapons can be heard near Donetsk Airport, with “a column of smoke billowing nearby,” ITAR-TASS reports citing the self-defense militia. The press service of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People’s Republic could not immediately clarify the situation, but said it is receiving reports of clashes in airport area. The self-defense fighters “are anticipating the arrival of a Ukrainian military plane,” the press service added.
About 80 people have blockaded the Russian embassy in Kiev in protest of the Russian government’s alleged involvement in the Ukrainian crisis, RIA Novosti reports. Some of the people appear aggressive and are barring the embassy’s entrance with tires, witnesses report. Earlier, a handful of people with placards reading “Russia go home”, “No vodka!” and slogans insulting Russian President Vladimir Putin were seen picketing near the embassy.
— Євромайдан (@Dbnmjr) June 14, 2014
Embassy of #russia in Kyiv pic.twitter.com/wEKZuhHi3G
— Kateryna_Kruk (@Kateryna_Kruk) June 14, 2014
The Ukrainian security forces have commenced artillery fire on Slavyansk, the representatives of self-defense forces told ITAR-TASS. A few residential buildings were hit, and also a school building, according to unconfirmed sources.
Self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine have allegedly downed another plane - a SU24. The pilot is alive and currently being taken for questioning, RIA Novosti reports. There were a total of two SUs that took part in the overnight bombarding of a local police station.
The news follows reports of the two planes performing an attack around 4:30AM local time, which resulted in losses among the self-defense forces ranks, as well as civilians. Two have been killed and seven injured.
The Ukrainian militia offered no comment.
Kiev should not cover the crimes against its own people under a guise of a fight against terrorism, Russia said.
“Taking actions with a foreign blessing and support to suppress a protest movement, using troops and radical nationalists against civilians under the guise of a fight against terrorism, which is what is happening today in Ukraine, is absolutely unacceptable,” Russian presidential representative for international cooperation against terrorism and organized crime Aleksandr Zmeyevsky told a UN conference on Friday.
He warned that those responsible for crimes against their own people “will be held accountable by courts, the international community and their own conscience.”
The Russian official rejected accusations that Russia is fueling the violence in eastern Ukraine and is arming anti-Kiev militias there.
“The fantasies of Russia’s alleged role in escalating the tension are not based on anything. We reject the unfounded claims that Russia is interfering in Ukraine, sending troops and arms there,” he stated.
The comment came after the US accused Russia of supplying three tanks and some multiple rocket launchers to Ukrainian militias, which are defending against the constant attacks by the Ukrainian military.
Ukraine’s Communist Party may soon be banned as the Security Service (SBU) has sent the data about alleged illegal activity of the Ukrainian Communist Party to the Ministry of Justice, report Ukrinform news agency. SBU added they may start criminal investigations on the activity of the heads of the party.
In May, the leader of the party, Petro Simonenko, said that if he had been the head of the country, he “would have immediately withdrawn all the troops” from Ukraine’s south-east, labeling Kiev’s military crackdown a war against people.
Two Ukrainian military units reportedly clashed on the territory of Lugansk Airport on Friday after one of them hoisted a Russian flag and tried to leave the area.
“After the fighting one of the units from [the city of] Dnepropetrovsk left the airport… and is now apparently in a forest nearby. We are trying to establish contact with them. But the fact of raising the Russian flag speaks volumes,” Aleksey Toropov, spokesman for the Lugansk militia, told RT.
The airport stations several units loyal to Kiev, which use it as base of operation to launch attacks on Lugansk militia. Kiev has to rely on supplying them through airlifts, because land routes in the region are not safe for its troops.
Forty-nine Ukrainian troops were confirmed killed when their military Il-76 transport jet was taken down by local militia forces just before landing at Lugansk Airport.
Lugansk self-defense forces confirmed that they were behind the downing of the transport aircraft.
“It was hit with a rocket. We believe there were military troops on board,” a spokesman for the militia HQ told RIA Novosti.
Around 30 paratroopers were killed as self-defense forces took down a Ukrainian military Il-76 jet as it was landing in Lugansk, TSN.ua news website reported, citing an army source. The plane reportedly crashed as self-defense forces hit it with a rocket. It is not clear whether there are any survivors.
Air raid sirens went off in Lugansk, warning residents of an upcoming raid, RIA Novosti reported.
13 June 2014
Shooting has resumed in Slavyansk and Kramatorsk as part of the Ukrainian military's crackdown on the self-defense forces in eastern Ukraine, RIA Novosti quoted a self-defense representative as saying.
Ukrainian military helicopters have fired at a village in Lugansk region, RIA Novosti quoted an eyewitness as saying. “Just now the helicopters fired at the village of Schastye,” he said. He added that there are damages, but said it is unknown whether there are any casualties.
Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to take part in political consultations focused on Ukraine’s association agreement with the EU, according to the Kremlin’s website. The participation was agreed upon during a telephone conversation with the president of the European Commission, Jose Manuel Barroso.
Thick smoke is coming from Lugansk Airport, as well as non-stop shooting, Ukrainian UNN agency reports, citing witnesses.
“Smoke is coming from the airport building. Shooting has started, and it has been unceasing for more than 10 minutes,” a witness was quoted as saying.
Earlier, the self-defense forces claimed to have shot down a Ukrainian military transport aircraft in Lugansk Region, which they said apparently managed to land at Lugansk Airport, but started burning.
One person has died and one was injured as at about 7:30am local time (04:30 GMT) several shells were fired from ‘Grad’ multiple rocket launchers at the city of Dobropillya in Donetsk Region , said the head of the Dobropolsky district, Oleg Kravchuk, in a video address on Friday. The video address was published in a community page of the city in the VKontakte (In Contact) social network.
The shelling hit a vegetable warehouse, which is still on fire, he added.
“This happened as a group of people, terrorists, hijacked Grad multiple launchers and in the region of Mertsalovo Station fired at our city” Kravchuk said. “Then something went wrong, they failed to do everything they wanted, they left the installations, mined them and fled.”
WARNING: GRAPHIC VIDEO
Ukrainian oligarch Igor Kolomoysky, who has been picked by Kiev as Dnepropetrovsk Region governor, suggested erecting a 2,000km-long electrified fence with barbed wire, minefields and ditches along the border with Russia, Ukrainian media reports.
A letter with a plan of the fence has been sent to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, the deputy head of the Dnepropetrovsk regional administration, Gennady Korban, confirmed to vesti.ua. An estimated cost of construction works is 80 million euro (US$108 million), Korban said, adding that “this is not such a big money.”
Kolomoysky’s deputy, Svyatoslav Oleynik, meanwhile said the fence would cost 100 million euro ($135 million) and that local businessmen “are already calling with initiatives to fund at least a small bit of the wall.” According to Oleynik, the fence would take only five to six months to complete.
Коломойский предложил Порошенко отгородить Украину от России забором с током, рвом и минами http://t.co/0yww8lFV1Apic.twitter.com/3EsUg6CrmU
— RT на русском (@RT_russian) June 13, 2014
Self-defense forces in Lugansk shot down “with small arms” a Ukrainian military transport aircraft near the eastern village of Lutugino, said the head of the self-proclaimed republic’s press service, Vladimir Inogorodskikh, as quoted by RIA Novosti. Following this, smoke was seen coming from the aircraft as it headed to Lugansk Airport, he said.
Currently, thick smoke can be seen coming from the airport, he claimed.
“Apparently the aircraft managed to land and is burning.”
The storming of the Donetsk People’s Republic’s HQ in Mariupol has ended, RIA Novosti reported, quoting the self-defense forces.
“We’ve lost between six and 12 people. We don’t have the precise information, as we don’t know how many are wounded and captured,” a representative at the headquarters told the agency.
It has also been confirmed that the National Guard managed to seize the building of Priazovsky University, which served as barracks for self-defense fighters.
There is, however, a “political bloc that is located in other buildings.”
There is no information yet on the number of dead among the National Guard.
“Witnesses report there have been many dead, but there is no precise data,” the spokesperson said.
Currently, there is no heavy gunfire in the city, only separate gunshots are heard from time to time.
The city council building in Mariupol has been captured by Ukraine’s National Guard’s ‘Azov’ battalion. Interior Minister Arsen Avakov claims on Facebook that four servicemen have been injured in the firefight. Reportedly five members of local self-defense units have been killed and 11 detained. The minister reported of two defused handmade explosive devices and a vehicle full of weapons intercepted on the road connecting Mariupol and Donetsk. The federalist forces have reportedly eliminated one APC belonging to the National Guards.
Ukraine’s coup-imposed Interior Minister Arsen Avakov has posted on Facebook that the operation is on to liquidate the fortified sector of self-defense forces in the center of Mariupol. The Ukraine’s National Guard is taking part in the operation with special forces from the Interior Ministry.
The operation began at 4:50am local time (01:50 GMT) and is “going as planned. Successfully,” Avakov said.
There are no losses on the part of the Ukrainian army forces, only “two fighters injured,” he added.
The operation is continuing.
Kiev troops are attacking the self-defense force headquarters in the eastern Ukrainian city of Mariupol, reports the self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Donetsk on its Twitter feed.
“Ukrainian government soldiers have shelled the headquarters of the People’s Republic of Donetsk. The building is on fire. Self-defense fighters are holding their positions."
12 June 2014
The OSCE will be looking into the status of the Russian language in Ukraine. The organization will be working to determine which language residents prefer to use, OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier said.
The Polish Foreign Ministry has temporarily closed its consulate in Donetsk, a spokesman for Foreign Minister Marcin Wojciechowski said, as quoted by RIA Novosti. The reason behind the closure was the unpredictable situation that is unraveling throughout the region.
Almost 8,000 Ukrainian refugees have arrived in Russia’s Rostov region in the past 24 hours, Russia’s ombudsman for children’s rights Pavel Astakhov said on his Twitter account.
Kiev’s coordination unit has developed a plan to temporarily relocate residents from the east of the country while the military operations continue, RIA Novosti cited Ukraine’s Interior Ministry as saying. The police will be providing security for residents during the relocation, deputy Interior Minister Sergey Chebotar said.
Russia introduced a draft resolution to the UN Security Council that condemns attacks on residential quarters and civilian facilities in southeastern Ukraine, said Vitaly Churkin, Russian envoy to the UN.
The draft also calls for an immediate end to all violence and for a lasting ceasefire. It voices concern over the use of prohibited ammunition, including incendiary bombs, during the military crackdown.
The draft urges all sides to cooperate and to implement the OSCE proposed roadmap for the resolution of the crisis in Ukraine.
"The draft resolution will aim to stop the violence and support the political efforts the OSCE has been undertaking in vain so far. We urge the UN Secretary-General to support them," Churkin said, adding that its adoption would demonstrate the UNSC’s support for the crisis settlement efforts.
“This is very important for us because the situation in deteriorating," he stressed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Petro Poroshenko, discussed the normalization of the situation in southeastern Ukraine and the development of relations between the two countries during a phone conversation on Thursday, according to Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov.
At least three people were injured as unidentified men shelled two buses carrying women and children away from Slavyansk, the city’s deputy self-defense commander told RIA Novosti.
“Two vehicles taking children out of Slavyansk were shelled near the village of Rairogodok (three kilometers east of the city). The vehicles were white flagged,” Fyodor Berezin said, adding that the children were returned to the city after the incident.
Russia has created “good conditions” at the refugee camp in the Rostov Region for Ukrainians fleeing the crisis in the neighboring country, said OSCE Secretary General Lamberto Zannier while visiting the camp on Thursday.
The deputy governor of the region said the refugee problem is “becoming more complicated,” adding that the camps have already given shelter to almost 4,000 refugees, including 1,800 children.
“People no longer come in groups, because buses are bombed, people come by themselves, we group them and partly leave here, partly send to other regions, " he said as quoted by RIA Novosti.
The two self-proclaimed eastern People’s Republics of Donetsk and Lugansk will soon create a joint constitution, government and parliament, said Oleg Tsarev, leader of the ‘South-East’ movement supporting a Novorossiya union, at a press briefing in Donetsk, RIA Novosti reported.
He added that it is unclear if the union will have a capital.
The National Guard refuted reports that phosphorous ammunition was used against civilians in the south-east of the country, its press service said. Overnight Thursday the self-defense forces said that the village of Semyonovka had been shelled with fire-bombs. Reports in the local media asserted that the bombs might be phosphorous. Much of the village was set ablaze.
If confirmed, this will be the first case of fire-bombs being used in the conflict.
The so-called Maidan protesters stormed the State Border Service HQ in Kiev demanding the resignation of the service’s head, Nikolay Litvin, accusing him of corruption and failure to protect the eastern border. As Litvinov came out of the HQ the crowd tried to enter the building, however police used water from a hose to disperse them.
Self-defense forces in the Lugansk Region have been able to stop the movement of a column of Ukrainian tanks, said the press service of the self-proclaimed Lugansk People’s Republic, as cited by ITAR-TASS.
“Today at about 5am [02:00 GMT] up to 40 Ukrainian tanks and Ukrainian military troops started moving in the Lugansk Region,” said a representative of the republic. “However the self-defense using rocket-propelled grenades and mortars was able to stop the Ukrainian troops,” and destroyed one of their trucks.
No one from self-defense militia was injured, the service added.
11 June 2014
The outskirts of Slavyansk were fired at with incendiary bombs, local self-defense forces told RIA Novosti. Eyewitnesses said the bombs exploded in the air, not far from the ground, then broke off into smaller pieces and caused several fires.
The self-proclaimed People’s Republic of Lugansk sent a letter to 15 countries, as well as Russian constituencies, asking to be recognized as an independent state, RIA Novosti quoted the republic’s spokesperson as saying. Some of the recipients included Russia, Abkhazia, Belorussia, South Ossetia, Russia's Republic of Chechnya, Armenia, Syria, Serbia, Cuba, and China, the spokesperson added.
A Crimean inter-agency task force on refugees has called on the Crimean government to impose a state of emergency in several districts hit by an influx of refugees from Ukraine, Interfax reports.
According to the task force’s head, Irina Kluyeva, such a move would allow the republic's reserves to be spent on aid and assistance to refugees.
Some 100 Ukrainian refugees are crossing into Crimea daily. About 1,300 refugees, mostly women and children, are already registered in the centralized aid program. Some 5,000 to 7,000 refugees have entered the Russian republic to stay with relatives and friends.
The Ukrainian government must stop its military operation and agree to a ceasefire with eastern Ukrainians fighting against Kiev forces, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told US Secretary of State John Kerry over the phone.
According to a statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry, Lavrov stressed the importance of direct talks between Kiev and the self-proclaimed authorities of eastern Ukrainian regions, and called for a “real national dialogue on Ukraine’s future structure.”
The minister said that Kiev should also be looking for a solution to pressing humanitarian issues in eastern Ukraine.
Both Kerry and Lavrov spoke in support of the efforts by the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe on the de-escalation of the Ukrainian crisis.
The situation in Donetsk Region’s cities is “on the brink of a humanitarian catastrophe” and imposing martial law “would only make the situation worse,” said the mayor of the city of Donetsk, Aleksandr Lukyanchenko, as quoted by UNIAN news agency.
According to the news agency, some 40 percent of Slavyansk residents have already left the city, which has been turned into a battleground in clashes between Ukrainian forces and self-defense fighters. Half of the buildings in Slavyansk have reportedly been destroyed or damaged in the relentless army shelling.
Some 15,000 people have also left the city of Donetsk during Kiev’s military operation. However, it has been deemed impossible to evacuate the entire city, which has a population of almost one million.
The Ukrainian army should close off the country’s border with Russia and “fire from tanks and APCs at anyone attempting to cross the border,” the Ukrainian interior minister’s advisor, Anton Gerashchenko, told local Channel 5. A state of martial law should also be imposed in eastern Ukrainian regions, the official believes. According to Gerashchenko, this would “physically prevent” male adults from Russia – who are said to be volunteering to fight against the Kiev forces – from crossing the border and joining with Donetsk and Lugansk self-defense troops.
Since the beginning of April, 270 people have died and 713 others have been injured in Kiev's military crackdown in eastern Ukraine, according to health officials.
“225 people have died in Donetsk region, 576 people have asked for treatment for wounds in hospital, currently 150 people are hospitalized. Since the beginning of the standoff 45 people have died in Lugansk region, in all 137 people were injured,” the statement on Ukraine’s Ministry of Health website reads.
These new figures have been revised, according to the ministry.
Russian journalists reporting for Channel 1 came under fire from tanks in the village of Semyonovka near Slavyansk, eastern Ukraine, said a statement on the channel’s website.
"Today, a Channel 1crew currently working in the village Semyonovka came under fire in the Donetsk Region. This, as they say, is the vanguard edge of Slavyansk defense."
The statement reads that the buildings in Semyonovka were shelled from armored vehicles. The journalists were taking an interview with the self-defense troops “from the front lines” when the “new shelling” began. The number of injured is unclear.
The Public Health Ministry of Ukraine has released the latest data on victims of the “counter-terrorist operation” in eastern regions of the country, reported RIA Novosti, quoting the Ukraine National News agency.
Official statistics claim that 210 people, among them 19 children, died in the special operation by the Ukrainian government against the federalist insurgents in the Lugansk and Donetsk Regions.
“Over 50 people died yesterday in both the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions,” stated Health Minister Oleg Musiy. The minister particularly stressed that his data is based solely on statistics from hospitals and morgues.
The minister also did not mention whether the stats include both civilian and military losses.
#Ukrainian sources say #Lugansk airport is fully controlled by the #Ukrainian army and anti-govt forces are lying that they have taken it
— PaulaSlier_RT (@PaulaSlier_RT) June 11, 2014
Russian regions bordering Ukraine are successfully handling the flow of refugees coming in from eastern Ukraine, representative of Russia’s Kursk region Valeriy Ryazan told RIA Novosti. Most of the refugees from Lugansk and Donetsk regions are being taken in by friends and relatives on the other side of the border.
The secretary general of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), Lamberto Zannier, will travel to the Russian city of Rostov-on-Don on Wednesday, where he will visit refugees from eastern Ukraine. Zannier is arriving in Russia after an invitation from the country’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and will also visit the local government administration.